Project Icegate, Project One
by Aren Elsa
Summary: What is Project Icegate? What is Project One? It is both of these questions the Pentagon asks when Frenzy does some poking around, and A certain super soldier and some Autobots go to the SGC for a visit. Jack just wanted a vacation, he got it big time
1. A visit to Earth

_Project Icegate, Project One  
>Chapter 1; A Visit to Earth<em>

_**Writers note: This story is to be read as if told to the reader by someone told a full account of the events.**_

"Are your ears open? Good, I'll begin." The man clears his throat, "this is a story about a war that started before time began on earth, A young woman, a beautiful car, a group of visitors, and a few angry machines..."

* * *

><p>The stars around Earth were shining brightly, though none in New york could see them as the day was reaching noon. Jack was almost glad he had a vacation coming up. And to spend it with some visitors from Alesia made it even more fun, having to explain the best parts of the world. So far the Alesians in question had visited China and Egypt. But nowhere else.<p>

Then there was that weird attack on Chicago, one that drove jack crazy as he had no idea what had gone on then, as he was off world at the time visiting with Jacob on Minnesota Two, by time he got back everything had been set to rights. Mostly. But now he was in New York. Not exactly the Windy City, but it would do.

He was at the airport. Awaiting his guests, eight of them in total, four men, five women. Three of them soldiers, Most of them basic doctor types that Jack never really got the hang of, Like Feldger, those that never saw combat. Either way they wanted to learn and explore New York, and Jack planned on taking them to the best parts of the city. Though he warned them about traffic was nuts in New York. Nothing really moved much. Which was why the man never rented a car, and used public transportation instead. Not that it truly mattered, much.

The plane arrived, the eight stepped off, a good group, nice and to the point, though jack could tell the soldiers did not want to be there, He could see they were young men, new to battle, possibly f=giving this as a mission to test them out with. Well, at least they are good men, they look it. Jack thought to himself. He stepped forwards to greet the leader of the group, an older man. Possibly older then Jack, but appeared the same age,. "Welcome to New York, one of America's better cities" He said holding out his hand to shake. "I'm general Jack O'Neill, I was asked to be your guide, its my vacation time anyhow so I figured, at least it'll give me something to do. And Jacob's busy with his mom...'

"Thank you General." the leader of the small group replied shaking jacks outstretched hand, "My name is Max, this is Dr Vasnitra, Mirerith, Reavia and my wife Martha, and sergeants Vali, and Gaius, and Captain Mark." Max pointed out each in turn, all were pretty nice appearing for as earth like as possible, no business suits as Jack wasn't good with the type. He himself wore loose fitting shirt and jeans with a pair of work boots on his feet. The nine Alesians were the same, all with clothing that would pass off as normal to the naked eye, but Jack to tell they had a weapon on them somewhere But he did not voice it.

"So, you guys ready for a vacation?" jack asked, trey all nodded, "Good good, lets get going. There's lots to see, and lots to eat!" Was he planning on filling them up or what?

* * *

><p>the two weeks blew by fast, and it was just one more day and night before the Alesians and jack were to go back to the SGC and then the Alesians to home. And jack back to Washington. Not that he wanted the vacation to end, so far the Alesians were nice people. The one doctor. Reavia, expressed interest in several earth animals, one of them a cute haveness puppy, and several adorable kittens.<p>

But now the group was at a fancy restaurant to eat. The place was a upscale dining establishment, Sometimes Jack went there for private meetings with top brass like Hammond or the president. Or similar people. But it did not mean that Jack went there normally.. The meal was ordered, each ordered something worth tasting.

The front door opened and two people entered to sit down to eat, right behind them as the door was closing a little blue and silver RC truck toy zoomed into the restaurant as well. Heading first under one table, then to another before coming to a halt under Jacks own table. Wheelie then transformed swiftly, just as he felt the vibrations from Swallowtail, yeah he was safe, he clicked his attenae to let the larger Autobot know that he was safe. The Mutticon was gone, or should have been.

It was then that the aroma of cooked meat filled what the tiny scrap drone had for a nose, and whatever it had that passed for a stomach also rumbled slightly, thankfully at the same time as something rumbled outside as Swallowtail roared to a halt. A woman stepped out of the car and the car sped off as the woman went towards an alleyway.

Jack looked up at the noise outside, not many people in New York owned that loud of a car, wait, why were the streets oddly clear? At this time of day they were jammed with cars and people! Max spoke up when he too noticed the oddly cleared street outside, "Something going on outside?" He asked.

Jack waved him off, "Nah, just the typical day in New York" He said turning to his steak... which was an empty plate. What the hell ? "Where'd my steak go?" He asked, he called to a waiter, asking about the missing item, the waiter said in reply "I just placed it on your table sir. You must have eaten very quickly." Jack shook his head and ordered a second one "I'll bring it right out sir."

A few police sirens went past as Jack sat down, there was a crashing noise heard as well from outside, as well as shooting. But it was a oddly metallic voice that spoke up at his elbow. "They call this a posh Restaurant? Ha! There's no Oil in the food!" The owner of the voice was one very disgusted little blue and silver robot, his mouth was in the shape of a very familiar oval clear colored optics stared out at the world with a hint of red. About thigh high at Jacks left elbow. Jack stared. Martha spoke up as her husband placed a hand on Marks arm and shook his head, Mark let go of the plasma pistol."What is it?"

Jack stared, Wheelie noticed him, picking at his teeth Wheelie said, "Hi, ya lugs got any oil up there?" He asked the people at the table, nine in all. Four women, five men. All dressed as basic New York residents.

Mark snarled, "I do not care what it is, it does not belong here, let me kill it!" He looked to Max, who looked curious more then anything, for his orders. Earth technology was interesting to say in the least.

Said Max, who was staring at Wheelie in fascination, "Amazing little creature. I was not aware your people had come so far in technology." At the Alesians words, Wheelie did his best to appear nice and neat, which was actually impossible to do because he was all bone, silver in color and bits of blue metal that made up the rest of the RC toys structure and body. With two wheeles for his shoulders, and two for his ankles, Wheelie looked a bit bizarre.

* * *

><p>It was then that several things happened at once, People screamed outside, glass shattered and the front window exploded inwards as a car was hurled at the building. Mark lifted out his pistol and fired at the exact instant the glass shattered. Wheelie ducked and screamed like a lunatic, "I'm not supposed to be here! Don't shoot! I'm just a scrap drone!.. I'm..." Wheelie halted when his nose picked up a heavenly scent. Oil!<p>

He spotted it,, oil was pooling at the front of the restaurant from mthe thrown Volvo sedan! "AHA!" Wheelie said pointing at the oil all giddy like and starting to wheel forwards before a pair of snaps where heard and he found himself snowshoeing forwards. He stopped when he found himself slowed down by the mouse traps, "Aw great! Stuck again! Where's my Warrior Empress when ya need her?" his attention focused on the pooling oil. He once more started snowshoeing his way to the oil pooling at the front door to the posh building.

Jack started yelling the instant the car came into view, "Get everyone to the back of the restaurant and away from the flying glass. Quick!" Of all the rotten luck, Jack thought seeing the car come sailing at the front of the building. He had to act quickly and get the people to safety. Max stood as Jack did, With people screaming Mark was ignored for the moment.

Marks scooped up the snowshoeing RC truck as it scampered as fast as it could for the oil near the door, Jack came over to the pair as Wheelie noticed he wasn't moving any closer to the oil, and noticed Mark holding him with a rather mean intent clear in his eyes. "Uh hi! Ya mind giving me a toss to the oil over there?" Wheelie asked, pointing to the pooling oil near the front of the room. "Y'see, its kinda hard when one's got his wheels stuck in mouse traps." He pointed to his feet, trying to smile as Mark just gave him a 'what the freck are you?' look.

Jack spoke up then when he got close enough to get a good look at Wheelie, "When did the Japanese make such an advanced robot?" He asked, Max even came over to the two men, curiosity clear on his face

"No" Mark said, as Wheelie struggled in his iron grip, going so far as to pull back but one finger, "It is not from Earth, your world is not this advanced to make a fully sentient robot"

Wheelie then stopped moving, "Japanese? I'm not Japanese!"He snickered thunking his chestplate that said clearly FORD within an oval with a three fingered and thumbed fist, ontop of it was a small little faceplate of some kind. The Autobot symbol. "I'm Cybertronian!" He asked his hand picking at his teeth, "What are Japanese? That is not a planet I am aware of?" He would have said more but there came a horrendus crash and something crashed into Mark, sending him, Wheelie and whoever crashed into them to the floor.

Mark got back to his feet, His gun out and pointed at the woman in scarlet red, her face uncovered as was her fire red hair, black streaks were in the hair of the woman. She stank of oil and other stuff, blood most likely. "Who are you?" Mark asked, his pistol at the womans nose.

"Move that!" The woman snarled in a strong accent, reaching her hand upwards as if to pull herself to her feet using Marks gun as a handhold. Wheelie however was going crazy, "Not good!" He recognised the woman right away. "Let me outta here I want out!" He shouted as a shrill voice screamed from outside.

"Pitful fleshbag!" It was Starscream. The massive Decepticon looked around, he kicked over a car and fired a rocket at the policemen that were trying to detain him. Another explosion sent a second car crashing into the front of the building where the other one was as the Mutticon took off into the sewers below.

Mark ignored the sounds from outside as Jack went to make sure everyone was safe in the back part of the building. Mark spoke as he powered up the pistol, "You will tell us who you are , now"

Lake just looked at him, then his weapon, which was between her hands, and powered up, she let go of the tihng and fell once more to the floor, flat on her back. "I can't exactly tell you that."

Another car crashed into the side of the building, sending dust everywhere. Lakes radio was just out of her reach, inbetweren Max's legs, She saw that Wheelie was caught, He was pretty much motioning to her "A little help here Warrior Empress." Mark snickered and shook his head, "Speak!" he commanded.

"Orders is orders, " Lake replied, Withdrawing, fast as lightning, a strange weapon, "let go, Wheelie." She commanded, she was the one that gave orders in places like this. Basically she meant for the man to let go of the tiny ex-Decepticon.

Mark shook his head, "Tell me who you are, and maybe, I'll let him go." He said, Wheelie started mubmling under his breath, flipping the bird at the man, though Marks attention was focused on the woman in red that laid on her back holding a weird weapon towards him.

Lake would have replied, but the dust cloud from the car getting wrenched away and a shrill voice screeching "Where are you weakling worm!" Starscream yelled as he threw the car aside, the car crashed into a bus, which by then was empty as was most of the street.

"You might want to run" Lake said, as she spotted Starscreams angry horrifying mug in the front windows of the resturant. However she was not the only one that the massive 'Con regocnised. "YOU! Scrap drone!"

Wheelie screamed "I'm not here!" And transformed into his RC truck form... mostly, since his neck was held tightly by Mark at the time, his lower halh transformed into a perfect RC toy truck, the front bumper and grille guard however didn't quite mesh. At least until Mark out of pure shock alone let go of Wheelie as Lake clawed her way to a a overturned table, screaming into a radio, Wheelie scampered off as fast as he could, "I'm not here! Ah!" The wall ahead of him exploded into fragments, Wheelie made a U-Turn and took off screaming like a lunatic, repeating "I'm not here!" over and over.

Lake screamed into her radio, "Swallowtail, Draw him off, do something, distraction, anything, get Starscream out of here before he blows the whole place up!" The eight other people also dove for cover, taking out their plasma pistols and opening fire with them

"On it! Papa bear is incoming!" Came the robotrical sounding reply as gunshots where fired at the massive evil appearing robot, something fell off the thing in a heap, briefly large then condensing in size. Frenzy had a new mission to do.

Jack stared at the massive robot. Ok, what the hell was going on? Starscream looked ready to reach in and grab random patrons who ran off screaming like crazy to get away, litteraly climbing over each other to get away, the m assive hands of the robot smashed tables and otherwise around him before something outside distracted him. Jack stared as the small Mustang, must have been a collectors car, roared into view, on its doors, and hood from what Jack could see there was strange writing all over it, The car got close enough to the freaky robot and transformed into a massive creature, smaller, though faster. Firing what appeared to be a handheld railgun at the massive 'Con. The weapon rang, and the charge connected, Starscream shrieked and returned fire., the smaller 'Bot dove out of the path of the incoming fire and fired again. There had to be help coming. There just had to be,

And help was coming indeed in the form of a yellow medical hummer, Ratchet had arrived. The Hummer transformed then and opened fire with his handcanon. Starscream shouted something and returned fire before taking to the sky, better to get an attack from above. "get ready! Swallowtail get the humans to safety!" Ratchet called to the Mustang.

"Right!" Swallowtail replied, transforming quickly into her alt form and began herding the humans to safer places, for the moment following orders given by a ranking officer so to speak. It was even broadcasted over Lakes radio, though Ratchet merely said Swallowtail to do it, so lake too knew she was to help her autobot. She climbed ot her feet to look around the remains of the gutted resturant. So far, Starscream had left a good mark. Now where was...

CRACK!

Lake sank to the floor, Wheelie didn't notice, but, Mark did, Jack had had enough, too many secrets, and he thought the 'gate was a secret that none knew about. It turned out he was dead wrong. Mark just stared at the general, "What are you doing?" He asked as jack took a piece of rope and bound Lake with it.

"I'll explain later, get my laptop case will you. I got questions that need answers." He said, Mark was ready to just up asnd shoot the woman due to her actions towards the Captain, but apparently it wasn't know that lake was also a Cacptain, and according to Optimus Prime, pretty much a Prime for the humans. However her full rank was of Major. In terms of NEST, Lake was more then a Major, Lake was... well.. L.A.K.E.

Mark and Jack half dragged half carried Lake through the back of the restruant and put her into the back of a puddlejumper that Mark had called for, when he did so jack did not know, but it didn't matter, it was the fastest way to the SGC. Mark got into the pilots seat as the rest of the group filed onboard. Jack tied down the woman who was out like a light, a trickle of blood trailed down her forehead from under the scarlet red viel that covered her from head to foot. Jack was half tempted to check to even so much as see if the woman was wearing any kind of footware.

Jack sat down in the copilots chair after making sure their guest was cared for, "How soon until we get to the SGC?" He asked.

"About a half hour, give or take, Here, use this, it'll stun her" He produced a Alesian made zat type weapon. Jack took it

"I'll keep it handy for now. Get us to the SGC, if she starts to wake up I'll sat her once." Jack said thoughtfully, wondering who exactly the woman was, and more of wondering what those robot thing were and why they were in New York. "Now that you mention it" jack said thoughtfully, bringing up a search system on the front screen, "You mgiht be right about that little robot."

"I am right" Mark said as the Jumper lifted off from behind the building. "Terra is not advanced enough to make a fully senient robot life form." He said, clearly disgusted that he was unable to fry the tiny thing when he had the chance. "NABIS, system search, Senient Robots" Mark commanded, items scrolled across the front viewport. Nothing stood out.

"What did that little robot call himself," Jack wondered aloud before saying simply, "Cybertronian" NABIS picked up the words that Jack spoke and data scrolled across the screen. However even that turned up empty. Well that was that.

* * *

><p>In the ruins of the resturant Wheelie finally stopped screaming like a lunatic when he spotted Swallowtail in her Prentender Unit form digging through the damaged buildings calling out a name, None answered, Wheelie scarambled over the debris until he ran headlong into Swallowtails leg. "Wheelie, where's Lake, where is your Primary Innocent?" Swallowtail asked as she picked up the little Traxxas Tmaxx RC truck, which transformed in her hands, Wheelie looked scared as if he was about to get clocked by the larger Autobot,<p>

"It wasn't my fault, The humans they took the Warrior Empress, Frenzy's with them!" Wheelie all but screamed, he pointed towards where the jumper had been only minutes ago before the connection between Frenzy and Wheelie had been cut. He even pointed to the place Lake was last before they got seperated. Swallowtail, still carrying the tiny scrap drone went ot the location and found something that she was not happy about.

Blood, and according to the scan, it was Lakes blood. Damnit! It was possibly the first time that Wheelie saw Swallowtail angery. And was now more then a little scared. Just then a deep voice rumbled, "Ratchet, Report." It was Optimus, he'd just pulled into view, minus his trailer for the moment, as it was currently in use by NEST as a temp hiding place at a storage area.

"Starscream attacked while Lake and Swallowtail where hunting a few of Soundwave's pets." ratchet replied calmly, "And if the intel is correct Starscream fled when you arrived, also, something else fled as well, according to the scrap drone, Lake's been taken prisoner by the humans that Wheelie ran into while looking for food."

"Not just taken prisoner." Swallowtail said all but stomping from the remains of the restruant, Not that it fully mattered to the female Autobot. But her driver was in trouble, possibly badly hurt. "Lake was injured, apparently she was hit somewhere that allowed her to get taken prisoner by some humans." She recived a radio comm, it was ironhide. "What is it?"

"Pinky just reported a strange vessel flying overhead, It wasn't Starscream, he doesn't have a cloaking device on him, this is something different." Came the calm voice of the weapons speicalist.

"Anything else?" Optimus cut in as Swallowtail was too angery with herself at the moment to think clearly as she gently set Wheelie on her car frame's hood, the scrap drone transformed into his alt mode in order to keep from scratching the mustants paint job.

"Yes, there was a brief communications connection from Frenzy, a text message" Ironhide replied

"What message?" Swallowtail asked then, all of a sudden concerned

"It reads thus, 'On strange vessel with Warrior Empress, and other humans, something fishy. Not normal. Destination, Norad Mountain. Will contact when arrived' that's it" Came the reply.

Swallowtail looked to Optimus, who at the moment remained in his truck form as Ratchet moved a demolished truck to the side to get it off someone gently. Several soldiers from NEST also arrived. The look on Swallowtails facehowever said evereything. As soon as Frenzy made contact, they'd head in that direction, until then, Lake was on her own.

* * *

><p>The jumper landed, Lake had started to wake up before Jack zatted her, knocking her out a second time, two soldiers came in and dragged her off the jumper and to a cell in the brig. Jack meanwhile set his laptop case in his office and went ot get a cup of coffee. Mark was pacing, and Max was trying to get him to calm down. "I know you wanted to destroy the little thing, but for us to find out more about these, Cybertronians, was it?" Mark nodded. "If it was destroyed, how would we know more about them?"<p>

"You treat them like people, are you mad?" Mark asked, now staring at his group leader, since he was only in charge of himself, Gais and Vali, and max oversaw the rest, he normally in situations like this had to hand over command to Max, who was more diplomatical in areas such as this.

Max nodded, "yes I call them people, just like us. They deserve to get looked into. General, do you have any idea what those things were and why they were fighting?" Jack shook his head, he had no idea.

In Jacks office, unseen by anyone the laptop poked a pair of icewhite optics around as if looking around to see what was going on around it. Good none where near, A simple broadcast was made, "Frenzy location lock" Was all Frenzy said. The little maniac of a drone scampered from Jacks desk and into the hallway fast as possible, hacking into the security system in almost a heartbeat, tapping onto a keyboard quickly as Wheelies voice filled Frenzy's head, "Find Warrior Empress! Don't worry about anything els,e if you worry about any thing else I'll have so many Autobots on your butt!"

"Shut it scrapdrone! " Frenzy chattered back, "Lake Located, Cell codex unidentified, let me worry about my job now stupid."

"What are you Brains or a laptop, get me a wireframe map uplink!" Came Swalllowtail's calm voice. Frenzy did as instructed. "Wheelie, work on that codex, after all, Lake is your Warrior Empress, so it is about time you do something for her other then scream and make confetti bombs."

There came a grumbling of Wheelie before a german accent broke in, "Allow me to be of assistance Scout Swallowtail." It was Brains

Within a nearby hotel Wheelie uplinked through Brains to connect into the firewall system set up by the Humans to get to Lakes cell and get her free, apparently they thought that resetting their systems and adapting to the virus that Frenzy had uploaded, using it as a firewall preventor. Things were moving quickly then, too quickly for the Autbots to like.

Within the Pentagons, War Room, computer screens were littered around the massive room, Several signal analysts were working round the clock to reset their system and get it back to proper levels. It took a lot of doing, but after a week and help from Sector Seven, things got back to normal and the anyalists were working the signal that was used to hack into the defence grid. It was not until Frenzy activated his link from NORAD Mountian did they once again take notice.

"Are you getting this?" One analyst asked his fellow, The man nodded and activated the diagnotics system, a screen apepared, "oh my, its just like the other two signals." It was an exact match to the signals used on Air Force One and the attack on Quatar. "an exact match to the first two."

"Are you detecting anything in particular ?" the second man asked, the first shook his head, "nope, other then the signal itself, nothing is different" Well, that meant little for them, the first analyst got on the radio and called for a sneior analyst and they went over the thing a second time. "Some files are being accessed through NORAD. There's nothing there other then a weapon testing zone, nothing more then that., so why would files be accessed down there, its a mile below ground."

"Well, whatever they are after, they're only accessing it, no downloads are being done." Said one of the analysts. A list of files blinked across the screen rapidly, eacah one on the screen for a few seconds before replaced by another. Finally it halted on a few for extended periods of time. "What is 'Project Icegate?'" One analyst asked, "Who is Captain One?" asked another. All these questions and more were being raised as something was going on.

"Who ever is doing this is accessing these files through a terminal in NORAD." one analyst said, he turned to his fellow and higher ranking general, "Sir, permission to look into the files found?" The general looked thoughtful before nodding,

"Look into all files labeled Captain One, and project Icegate, I want everything found printed and on my desk by morning. Get to it gentlmen, I have to contact the president." The general then left, as he did so he said "Get in touch with NORAd and inforem them they have a security breach." The techie nodded and got on the radio to the SGC.

* * *

><p>In the SGC Jack was seated at the brefing room table with Max and one of the other Alesian technical people as Jack never really cared for that stuff trying to find out through NABIS and also the Ancient database what the little robot called himself was, and how many more there were. Jack was ready to call it a day when Walter arrived, "yes Walt?"<p>

"Sir, We recived a call from t he Pentagon, something about a security breach coming from here." Walter replied.

"And?" jack asked looking up somewhat boredly.

"Well, the signal traced is the same signal that was used in two other attacks, one on the miltary base in Quatar three years ago, and the other from Air Force One around the same time. Both times files were accessed and downloaded, the second time had a virius uploaded, took down the defence communication grid for two weeks."

Jack nodded, he remembered that 'vacation', unexpected too. Perfect time to campig you asked him. "Well, Inform the teams, we might have us a mole, check all terminals, levels everything... and get me some fresh coffee, this stuffs getting old." Jack said motioning to his cup as he stood up to go back to his office.

On the level of the power system Frenzy was hard at work typing into a screen and with two hardrvies bays open was typing and franctically looking for files and everything, several files blinked into exisitance before he found what he needed, with a cackle he disconnected and shut down the system,

Wheelies voice came over his comm system, "Ok, Lakes cell codex broken, unlocking now! Warrior Empress free whoo!" Wheelie made some funny chattering noises as if happy for something important as Lakes celldoor clicked open. He even started singing "I get to die, another day, get to die, another day..." horribly offkey as well. He never was good singer.

Frenzy sent back a reply "Project Icegate found, uploading file source, Am in NORAD mountain at the moment will begin searching for the Icegate now..." He seemed to ask over the internal commlink he had.

Optimus replied, "Confirmed, find the Icegate. If it is anything like the Spacebridges, we can connect to Cybertroni Prime's own Icegate and hope for help, or an easy fallback point."

"Roger roger." Came the exicitble voice of Frenzy as two voices broke in, "We're on power level 33, nothing wrong here, all clear so far." Frenzy made a slight hiss and shifted into his radio form set upon a storage box near the computer terminal, which was not set to look as if he hadn't touched it, the two drive bays were out.

Siler arrived then, pistol ready as he walked through. "All clear in the storage rooms... Wait, someones tampered with the Database mainframe." Frenzy made no move as he listened and broadcasted everything he heard to Optimus. Apparently all thses humans liked their secrets, what was this database they spoke up.

* * *

><p>Down in the brig a door clicked open, within the only occupied cell a single woman dressed in scarlet laid on t he floor in a heap. Slowly waking up, what was she hit with. Her vision stung briefly. She put a hand to her head and pulled it away, it was sticky with dried blood, she rolled her eyes, what more was a l ittle bleeding. She got to her feet, her weapons had been taken and from what she could see only two men stood outside the door, and both seemed asleep, or dead.<p>

Either one worked for her. Upon closer examination, she noticed a pair of cut marks, looked like Frenzy had been by there, his CDs were the only weapon she knew of that made such deep marks. She policed the two bodies of their weapons, two pistols, amunition for both, and also two larger weaponsas, one of them a P90, strange weapon. The woman in red thought upon viewing the weapon, discarding the thing she picked up the more familiar M14 the other soldier carried.

It was time to find Frenzy, and get out of there, whereever there was.


	2. Project SOLDIER part 1

_Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 2: Project S.O.L.D.I.E.R. {part 1}_

The Pentagon was a mess of activity in the NEST war room. Lennox had reported the kidnapping of one of their field operatives and was trying, with help from the Autobots, to locate her before Swallowtail went on a hunting spree. General Morshower paced in the War Room as it was called, the place was setup only for NEST to use and only NEST knew about it, as did most of the analysts that were hired to find out what caused the network breach and also to get the whole frakking network back online.

But now questions were raised due to a recent look into things. Project Soldier, for one thing, confused Morshower to the extreme, and he was asking Lennox about it. Who, sadly, did not know a thing about such a project. However, Lake One was mentioned. There was also something of a Icegate. Prompting Morshower to ask Optimus about it, and what it meant.

"The Icegate is a link back to our planet, one of the nine moons of Cybertron had a item encased within the ice of its northern pole. If another is here on earth as we have come across so far, it is possible we may have a link to our home," Optimus calmly replied.

"So this, Icegate, what does it do exactly?" Morshower asked over the TV hookup system as a soldier brought in a box of papers. The top of which was marked **TOP SECRET** in red letters. Upon opening the box, the first file seen was a item called **PROJECT SOLDIER**, under it was a thicker heavier folder, labeled **PROJECT L.A.K.E. ONE.** And that made him confused. Colonel Lake was a pet project ? That didn't make sense.

Optimus sounded a bit on edge, as if he didn't want to share that he didn't know what the Icegate as they called it was able to do. Finally he said simply in his deep voice, "I do not know, All I know is, that it was uncovered during the war on Cybertron Zulu, the home world, so to speak, of Wheelie, and Brains, and also several Predicons."

Morshower nodded, "That's right, Swallowtail mentioned something about that. Lennox." Morshower turned his gaze towards the TV system once more. Lennox stood at attention. "I'm going to send you some files that might be helpful. Swallowtail might have need of them. Where is the Mustang anyhow?"

"Looking for Colonel Lake sir. We lost her in New York, last we knew, Frenzy was with her somewhere out west, he broadcast ed his location this morning about ten minutes before we made daily contact with you sir." Lennox replied

"Did they locate Col Lake's location?" Morshower asked.

"yes sir. Brains transmitted Frenzy's location until the connection between the pair was terminated" Lennox replied

"Do we have the coordinates?" Morshower asked.

"Yes sir, the location of Frenzy is 38,97 north, 104.89 west." Lennox said, reading off a piece of paper that a metal hand gave him with a hiccup. Screecher somehow got hold of some Energon Goodies

"Cheyenne Mountain, NORAD complex?" Morshower asked aloud, "What in the world is Lake doing there? Its a research station, not a jail"

"That's what I thought too Sir." Lennox said, "Optimus sent Ironhide with some of the other Autobots with Swallowtail to check in at a hotel near there. Their current location is in Colorado Springs, about a mile to the east of Frenzy's last broadcasted location."

Morshower nodded, Ironhide was a good soldier. He liked the truck a lot. Very dependable. A lot like his farm truck back home. "Alright, next contact here at daybreak tomorrow or until you hear from Frenzy or Swallowtail, understood?"

"Yes sir, Lennox out." The screen died. Morshower sat back in his chair as his aids leafed through the box of papers. "Someone tell me why one of our best field operatives are supposedly the pet project of the United States Military ?" The aids had no idea how to answer.

* * *

><p>Frenzy typed on the screen keyboard frenetically and speedily, breezing through files and folders with ease like he did before on Air Force One. He found a rather important file that made him nervous, Project L.A.K.E. One and with it a file labeled project S.O.L.D.I.E.R. What was it about ? The frenetic robot wondered as he scanned through the files,s looking for Project Icegate. Finally he found it.<p>

"Project Icegate located!" He transmitted over his comm, "Location search, NORAD, Cheyenne Mountain complex, Colorado Springs. America." he also sent the direct location point as well over a grid system of the world. Well, that was easy to find.

"Location confirmed" Came a voice, it was Swallowtail, "Lake is also free according to Brains and Wheelie, meet up with her and get to the surface, we detected you exactly a mile below sea level at your current location, Get Lake and get to the surface, will meet you there. In the mean time, try to not cause too much damage to their computer network."

"What about a dead end virus?" Frenzy asked, rather then shut down the entire global network like last time he'd only shut down a small area.

"Fine, shut down their radios in that area as well, a six grid circle, according to Brains scan as well, there is a tunnel that leads through the mountain, We'll meet you guys there, good luck!" the connection died.

Frenzy cracked his fingers, this was going to be fun. He started typing madly into the computers on screen keyboard and spiked a data node into one of the hard drives of the machine, a second later the virus was uploaded. "Lake, Lake, Lake!" the robot chittered happily as he spotted the locks of all the brig cells popping open, perfect, now to meet up with her.

Frenzy though started to wonder why he was helping the Autobots, though it confused the little former 'Con, Swallowtail had pointed out to the tiny robot, with the threat of being the lobbing ball, that, according to data collected from Cybertron, He was technically neutral, and if he helped the Autobots, they'd also protect the tiny drone from Megatron and Starscream, the latter of whom scared Frenzy. Frenzy agreed to work with the Autobots as long as he was able to computer hack, though Brains and he often clonked domes when it came to Chess.

Nevertheless, the frenetic hacker finished up what he was doing, but was in the middle of activating the virus when he heard Silers voice "We're on sub-level 33, power control room clear." he said, He turned a corner, and looked briefly into the room where Frenzy was, seeing just a radio and active computer terminal "Someones tampered with the Database mainframe" he said.

"Find out who and why." Came a static filled reply as the radios died. Siler tried without success at getting his radio working. Well, that sucked. He passed into the room and shut down the terminal, passing Frenzy as he did so, the radio poked its white optics up then reformed as Siler stood to leave and looked in his direction. Not giving the radio another thought he left the room and finished scouting the level for intruders.

* * *

><p>Lake turned a corner, two more soldiers down, so far two were dead, or stunned, she felt the necks of the two, they were still alive, just stunned, two disc cuts were in their chests, Frenzy had been that way. Apparently under the order to stun and not kill outright. It didn't matter, the woman moved around a corner. Briefly spotting a camera at the corner, She found a room and entered it, there, her things were set up there on a table, nobody in sight. She picked up the small bracelet sized item. Sedative needles. Perfect.<p>

She slid the bracelet onto her arm and wrapped the dark red cloth already on her arm around the bracelet, locking it in place. She also picked up her sidearm, the desert eagle was unloaded, the magazines set on the table beside it. She slid a magazine into the grip of the weapon, hearing a satisfying clack of the weapon loading and ready for use. She slid it into its proper place on her hip. And then, picking up her stolen weapon, she left the room.

She ducked behind a pillar and jumped upwards slightly as she heard voices, "Radios're down, need to find a way to get them working again," One voice said, "What about short wave?" A second voice asked as the owners of the voices came into view. "Carter, if you can get the radios up and working again I'll give you a pay raise." Jack said as he came into view, Col Carter with him, they passed under where Lake had hid.

A soldier came running up "Sir, Ma'am, The prisoner escaped, her guards were stunned." The soldier reported, Lake was directly above him in the heating system. This place was an absolute maze!

Jack threw up his hands, "Alright, I admit it, this day is crazy, first a good vacation wrecked with a woman in red flying through a window into our dinner table, then seeing giant robots in New York after the woman landed in my soup, now our lovely red prisoner is gone and the radios are down! What next? A mustang saying its looking for its owner ? Don't answer that, Carter!" Jack said when Carter was about to say something

Lake snickered where she hid directly above the three, the two men and the woman, doubtless Swallowtail was indeed looking for her. If only you knew, Lake thought, If only you knew the truth. Lake wondered then where Swallowtail was, and how things were going with the Autobot when she went missing. Doubtless Swallowtail was taking her going missing very hard on herself. And surely Ironhide was with her, Though for some reason Lake found herself wanting the Twins, Skids and Mudflap somewhere close by. Her radio was Cybertronian in nature, and it'd work easily, She waited until the three below her moved on. Continuing to listen to the group as Jack gave some simple orders. Lake hissed under her breath when she saw Carter directly below her. She had a bone to pick with that woman from several years ago.

"Lieutenant Lang, I want you to act as runner, you stay in the elevator and go to each floor with information, inform everyone the radios are dead and our prisoner is missing. Also, inform everyone to use the zat if they come across her. Carter, get the radios back online ASAP, Walter, get me a new coffee. I'll be in my office doing the paperwork that I love to do(!)" Jack said going up the stairs into the control room, then from there to the briefing room, then from there to his office as Carter continued on to her own area of the control room. And Lt Lang headed for the elevator.

With them gone Lake keyed her radio, "Frenzy, come in." She said once she heard the backwash of a lubricating robot over the comm system,

"Presentandaccountedfor!" came the fast reply from Frenzy, clearly he'd stuck his fingers in a wall outlet that was slightly blacked. "Lake, where are you? Orders are to join and head upwards fast as we are able."

"I can understand that, have you heard from the others?" Lake asked

"Indeedyso! Swallowtail wants to bomb the place, Ironhide is having a bad day and Optimus wants my hide, so what else is new with you Warrior Empress ?" Frenzy replied giving a brief sit rep. Well, that was easy to dicepter.

"Alright, considering the fact that you have my location, I want you to head up as fast as you can, contact Swallowtail, no, better, contact Optimus directly and let him know where we are, I heard something about a certain someone I need to meet up with."

"Copy that Lake, see you at the top! Oh, and Wheelie and Brains have complete control over the bases camera system." the connection died, It was time for Lake to have a meeting with an 'old friend' lake easily dropped without a sound to the floor two meters down and scampered towards the direction she heard Carter go, ducking behind some computer towers Lake watched as Carter set to work, the only person in the room aside from herself. Perfect.

* * *

><p>Two men paced down a corridor of the SGC, both of them Alesian, Mark was fuming, with him was Gaius, possibly the most level headed soldier of Alesia, the two men were conversing over the strange events in new York, and of the seeming madness of Max, one of their leading diplomats and scientists. "You are sure he is not mad?"<p>

"Quite sure, if he was then we would know it and clearly see it." Gaius replied calmly, Mark looked ready to blow a gasket, "I think Max may be right, If this is a new race of people that we never knew about then it is possible that we could have an ally and possibly further our technology."

Mark looked at his second in command, Gaius wads a good soldier, having the best record in keeping a cool head when it came to missions and doing strange solo missions for the High Council that took Gaius into deep forays to strange places in the galaxy. "I think you are both mad. That is a machine, not an intelligent being, you know that. You saw it yourself. Heard it scream."

"Yes and my ears are still ringing from that, how are you anyway, after that woman crashed into you after being blasted through a plate glass window I mean." Gaius asked, concerned for his friend, what had happened almost a full day before in New York had everyone on edge. What were those strange machines.

"Mine are as well, it was not human, it is sentient yes, but it is not meant to be alive, that much is certain." Mark said.

"You are that set on killing the creature ? Max said that we could have a possible link to the fourth race.' Gaius said

Unbeknownst to either man a pair of white optics poked around the corner behind them as Frenzy came out of the stairwell, Swallowtail made it clear, come with Lake, or get shot, he chose the first option out of need to survive alone. Uh oh! Soldiers! Frenzy thought, he did a quick scan of their genetical structure and noticed some similarities to Lake. But also some other things, for one thing, the two men he was looking around the corner at were huge brutes of men. Clearly football players as Wheelie labeled them. To which Brains had asked, "American or European?" which caused even Ironhide to snicker.

That didn't matter, he had to find Lake, there. The wireframe map of the place had her a few meters away around another corner. Now to get past these two first. He watched the two Alesians carefully, scanning them carefully to take in everything about the two. There were more, and one of them were identified with what Wheelie had on file. Whatever the two men where was useless in what Frenzy could find.

Mark turned and walked down the hall, away from where Frenzy poked his ice-white optics around to view to see if the coast was clear. Passing by a door which was labeled on Frenzy's wireframe map as the only direction to go to get to where Lake was, so he headed that way as quickly as he was able.

Within the Control room of the base, Lake waited a few minutes in quite, just watching Carter, she spotted Frenzy's white optics as the little robot scampered in rather quietly, into the control room, the stargate just beyond the window where Carter sat at a computer. Lake put a hand over Frenzy's mouth and shook her head when the robot tried to make a sound and head for the woman. Frenzy froze at Lakes unspoken command and let the human make the first move.

Lake stood up from where she hid, and with out a sound, stepped forwards to within a meter of Carter, "Of all the people in the galaxy to meet up with, I have to meet you again." She said

Carter froze at the sultry voice of Lake, once her teammate, then someone she worked to avoid, and if possible, have fired. And yet, Lake was too good, solving mathematical problems, and not to mention kicking some major Ori butt as well. And then she had managed to annoy Sam to the point of where Carter had shot Lake twice in the knees. Lake had sworn she'd get even with Carter for her misery. But that was six years before.

Carter reached a hand to her sidearm, quickly raising it up she found it missing as Lake knocked it from her grasp with an easy slap. "That wont be needed." She said, She stepped back about a meter or two. Allowing Carter to turn around in her seat, "its been along time hasn't it ?" Lake asked.

Carter just looked at Lake, taking in the scarlet dressed soldier of a woman. "Yes it has. Though I do not think you are here merely to chat and say hi are you lieutenant One ?" Carter replied

Lake shook her head, "I said I'd get even for the pain and misery you brought me. That was six year ago. And I still am not set on what to do to you to thank you for shooting me and leaving me for dead in Death Valley." Lake replied, watching Carter, "But that does not mean that I am just here for a brief visit. I am here for both that and to warn you, in a way."

"What do you mean ?" Carter asked.

"If you try to fix your radios within this base, it wont work, they're down until the dead end is reached and it unravels within your system of the local intranet down-link When the dead end is reached you'll be able to use your radios again just fine."

"What do you want Lake ?" Carter asked, now angered, slightly, now she knew why the radios were not working. Same with the phones.

"I want out of here. I'll have Frenzy give you a code to put a temp hack into the dead-end to allow a brief message to everyone searching for me to let me pass freely unhindered." Lake said moving towards the stairs, "I am quite sure you do not want to have your infirmary packed with soldiers after I am through with them Colonel..."

"What do you mean ?" Sam asked cautiously. She didn't exactly hate Lake, but she did not like her very much and was easily annoyed by the Asian woman in scarlet. Her gaze was then taken by the sudden appearance of a robot that looked like the skeletal structure of a human with four ice-white optics for eyes and blueish colored teeth in a strange mouth-like thing. "What is that ?" Carter all but screamed when she saw Frenzy as the robot ambled into view and planted himself at a computer terminal.

"That is Frenzy, what he is does not concern you Colonel, or should I say, Captain Carter" Lake snarled. Frenzy jabbered something, something that sounded like absolute gibberish to Carter, but Lake was able to understand his meaning with her rather good grasp of Cybertronian.

"adsitadfvrd avreevsd rreeeefvdvdvdfll, ggeersffddfcc gurkgurkgazoo zerk!" Frenzy said, which translated into "I managed to find a lift station to grab and send up. It's the only one I was able to lock everyone out of before the radio codex overwrote the dead-end hack for five minutes"

Lake nodded, she turned to Carter, "By your leave Captain Carter!" She said with a slight bow to the blond haired woman, Lake took a step up the stairs and turned her gaze towards the robot, "Frenzy, gishak zablo siksik!" She said in Cybertronian, basically saying "Lets go while the going is good. Now, Frenzy!" The robot nodded and bolted from his seat, gibbering the whole way in a odd guttural language of mechanical grunts and otherwise.

In her time with Swallowtail Lake had learned some Cybertronian, at least, enough to get by with. Frenzy gibbered something about "Soldiers in white" Lake nodded, she knew of just the fellows. One of them wanted to shoot Wheelie with some type of weapon. Even wanted to shoot her. Lake turned as she went up the first flight, then to the landing and went up the next flight. As she as she stepped onto the last step she spotted one of those same soldiers in white, his back to her. Though the man looked more the diplomat then anything else at that moment.

Max was fiddling with his comm system, he was unable to get hold of the AES Raincloud, A small science vessel, lightly armed, yet mostly for exploration. Beaming was somehow jammed, and communications were cut somehow. Though the voices from below of Carter and another woman alerted him, so it was only for an hour or so ? He heard Carters radio call over the base-wide PA system.

"Attention all personnel and off world visitors. Lieutenant Lake One has requested a clear path to the surface. I am currently trying to get the radios online and working. Contact with the surface is out of order. If anyone comes in contact with Lt One, let her be. Carter Out" the radio then died in a fit of static.

Maybe if I could speak with this, Lieutenant Lake, something may come to light about these... Cybertronians. Max thought turning around and halting in his tracks as a woman dressed in scarlet of a design similar to that of the High Councilors elder sister, or Silver Wolf's own appearance of attire. Stood at the opposite end of the conference table. With her was a four and a half foot tall skeletal creature with four brilliant white optics for eyes at her side.

The hazel eyes of the woman were what Max focused on when he looked her over. He'd never seen anything like the woman before. And nothing like the robot at her side. Max looked thoughtful for a moment before entering the briefing room and standing at the head of the table, placing his hands on the back of the chair in front of him he seemed to show Lake that he was not going to harm her.

The robot looked from Lake and the man in white, they dressed similar, sort of. Wherein Lake had a ancient Chinese style of clothing to her outfit design, the man had a more ancient roman look to him. It seemed as if Frenzy was at a loss of what to do. The robot jerked his head, or at least what passed for a head, between the two humans.

Finally, Lake broke the silence. "What do you want ?" She asked the Alesian

Max smiled and turned his gaze slightly to the right and down, "You know very well what I want." He said.

Lake smirked, "Humor me then. Offworlder." The woman snarled.

Max cast his gaze back to Lake, "I seek merely knowledge, and maybe a partnership, if not that, a good relations wherein there would be a trade agreement and perhaps a friendship between you and Alesia."

That didn't make much sense to Lake, though it made plenty of sense to Frenzy, the little but jabbered something strange and pointed at Max, his sensor package took in the guy carefully, he jabbered in literal gibberish, "Phasellus maecenas lobortis venenatis nibh venenatis nonummy sem vehicula faucibus ut fusce, massa iaculis Ad convallis netus faucibus. Rhoncus tortor aliquet risus bibendum, imperdiet nascetur condimentum nunc tincidunt montes blandit fermentum. Molestie id purus ac convallis vel pharetra. Risus proin. Lectus inceptos, diam mus tincidunt mus curabitur. Pellentesque fringilla donec. " but only one single sentence was said in English, "Alesian, Enemy of Energon!"

At that Frenzy sprang from his place at Lake's side and jumped onto the table with a growl of a guttural sound. He withdrew a pair of weapons from seemingly nowhere. Two of his four upper limbs held strange star-shaped weapons with small belts of sorts hanging off them. Like a replicator in its movements, only far quicker. And clearly deadlier. Had it not been for Lake's sudden shout of something, Frenzy would have attacked the man before him.

Frenzy immediately halted on the table, his gun still drawn towards the Alesian. At Lakes question Frenzy explained in Cybertronian, "Megatron sent spies to their world, they were never heard from again after they touched down. Megatron feared the worse, he then sent Soundwave, Soundwave gathered data, Brains has most of it somewhere on his servers." he said, Lake understood him clearly, yet again, to Max, the robot sounded as if he were speaking complete gibberish. "What I recall, Alesians used Energon as a weapon. Soundwave fled before he could be noticed by the creatures. But not before he lost several drones of his to their weapons."

Lake turned towards Max, "I do not think that Frenzy likes you. For what you are." She said.

"And why is that ?" Max asked her, his eyes on Frenzy. He knew of the robots ability to kill, only he never saw it first hand in combat, at least until that morning in New York two days previous

"It appears that your race and his have clashed once before, and as a result earned eternal hatred of the Cybertronians.' Lake replied moving around the table, towards the door, She chattered something to the robot, known now to Max as Frenzy, Better not let him near any coffee cans, the man mused to himself. The robot hopped off the table, keeping its weapons on the Alesian as lake and the robot moved to leave the briefing room, just as Jack arrived,

"Carter, what's this about Lieutenant One coming back from a mission gone bad ?" The man was calling out as he arrived from his office and stopped in his tracks, his eyes on the woman in red, yep, that was Lake alright.

"Colonel O'Neill Good to see you again" Lake snarled as Frenzy split his attention between Max and Jack, a weapon on each.

"Lieutenant Lake, good to see you too sweetheart, for a second I didn't believe my ears when Carter said it was you that wanted off the base." jack said seeing the woman clearly, his eyes then dropped slightly to the robotic being at her side. The weapon aimed at him, and the other weapon aimed at mark. "I take it that is your bodyguard ?"

"That and more, give me a clear path out and maybe everyone on this base will be spared a trip to your medical hall, including yourself. Colonel." Lake said, not taking Jacks rank of General as official, as far as Jack was concerned, Lake outranked him as she was a NEST Operative.

Jack shook his head, "Its General, not colonel, not any more, Lake." he said,

Lake shook her head, "As far as I am aware _general_," she said, "Your rank means nothing to me thanks to Frenzy and his comrades" she said. She had never expected to land in his soup, but she had. Pretty much at least. Thanks to Starscream she had gotten to the place she did not want to be in the first place.

"Its a he now ? And its got a name ?' Jack asked. Max just stared, a smile on his face, Frenzy twitched his four ice-white eyes back and forth between the two men. Muttering in Cybertronian to himself. He didn't like this, none of it. He jabbered something in a strange language as he kept his guns ready, though Lakes scant use of Cybertronian was strangely akin in Ancient Chinese from thousands of years ago.

Lake nodded, "Yes, he has a name, and a gender. He also has an old hatred for certain people." She eyed Max, who still stood at the conference table, his eyes locked on the robot. "So, without the need, for now, to shed human, or nonhuman blood at the moment. I suggest that you allow us both direct passage to the surface. I do believe my car is looking for me. It is very hard to keep a Mustang busy." Lake said, a smile playing on her lips as she watched Jacks eyes go wide as dinner plates. "I can keep Frenzy calm only so long... general. So if you want your men to remain alive, and possibly only asleep and waking with headaches, I suggest you let us free."

Jack shook his head, "Not until I get some answers" He told her. Lake just looked at him.

It was then that Mark arrived, "I heard the call, who is this... One" He said, trailing off when he caught sight of the woman, _and another robot with her_. How many of the damned things were there on Terra anyhow ?

Lake turned her gaze towards the man, almost in a heartbeat withdrawing her own sidearm and aiming at the man before he could make a move to draw his own weapon had Max not spoken up to keep him from doing so, "Let us not be too hasty, what happened in the past may yet be reconciled. Until that happens, having a Goa'uld!Tok'ra standoff is not the best option." He said. Mark agreed, he was more curious then angered now, thanks to his talk with his second in command. And also what Max said.

"What do you mean, what happened in the past ?" Mark asked his current XO. The Alesian soldier though young by his peoples standards, was confused by what the one he was merely to protect, and follow orders from, meant.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile on the outskirts of Colorado Springs, William Lennox drove what once was a major movie star of a 1967 Mustang GT500 King of the Road, known commonly as Eleanor, down a country road. Thanks to the extreme speeds the car could attain, it took the man less then a day to rejoin his team at their hotel. Along the way, the Mustang and human spoke between each other. A hard-light hologram of Swallowtails Pretender Unit had been seated in the passenger seat of the strangely made car.<p>

Lennox was used to American muscle cars, having their steering system on the left of the car, only Swallowtail was different insofar as somehow she got her transcsan messed up and the driver-seat was where the passenger seat, or shotgun, was normally located. Which made Lennox feel as if he were driving a mail jeep, or a Toyota Landcruiser.

"Do you think we can get to Lake in time?" Lennox asked

"I don't know." Came the reply, Swallowtail was strangely subdued during the trip from New Jersey to Colorado. And to Lennox, that was a very bad thing.


	3. Ironhide and the Three Stooges

Project Icegate, Project One  
>Chapter 3; Ironhide and the Three Stooges<p>

Poor Ironhide was stuck with what Lennox dubbed as the Three Stooges. General, Crank and Zippy were either slapping each other silly, or just acting plain crazy, which was normal for the three, though Zippy, had less zip then his brothers. After about a half day of hearing them bicker Ironhide had moved to the other end of the parking lot of the abandoned hotel. Anything to get away from the three.

But it was news of why they were there that got the three riled up and wanting a fight. Though it was General that had most of the knowing of what was going on compared to the other two. "Lake's in trouble!" He asked aloud and mostly told his brothers

"Where is Lake ?" Crank asked confused, was there a town called Trouble ?

"In trouble, we gotta get her out!" General said, he had a strange almost resolute look on h is face, like Swallowtail had, the mustang pulled into the parking lot, Lennox in her passenger seat as they arrived.

"Oh it is easy to get her out" Crank replied, putting a hand to his chin as if to think.

"Really how?" General asked his brother, already wondering how his nitwit of a brother could think of anything that wouldn't break their necks.

"I'll use my wits!" Crank replied, pointing to his head and tapping it, as if smart thinking.

"What are wits?" General asked confused.

"Now she's really in trouble" Zippy mumbled, to which Ironhide got angered, overhearing the three mumbling about Lake being in trouble. He drove himself over to the threesome.

"You three will be joining her if you don't shut up!" He grunted, he noticed Lennox get out of Swallowtails car form and the hood of the car splitting open and ejecting the Unit that Swallowtail was so used to using to get around places with the humans. Not that Ironhide really cared. He gave a brief greeting towards the pair as Lennox went to the door of one of the rooms that had been forced open thanks to General throwing Zippy at it.

Crank spoke up again after a few minutes of quite. "You know something guys," He said, "I've been thinking..." he was cut off by a startled 'oh no' from Ironhide

"Crank!" Ironhide grumbled, "What did Swallowtail tell you about thinking?" the black truck did not seem amused, and yet there was the slightest hint of a smile on his front grille.

"uh..." Crank replied dumbly "not to..."

"Exactly' Ironhide confirmed, "now shut up!" Crank did just that, transforming swiftly into his alt form and just sitting there.

* * *

><p>Epps opened the hotel room door to allow Lennox into the place, Lennox shut it behind himself once he was in, he noticed Brains hard at work, and playing Chess-master at the same time, wherein Wheelie was hard at work keeping an eye on the now hacked into NORAD base closed circuit camera system. "So, what's up? the Three Stooges out there are ready to have Ironhide shoot them"<p>

"They did good finding this place, it still has power." Epps replied.

"True," Lennox flinched as did Epps and Wheelie the latter of whom dove for cover when a loud explosion was heard outside that shattered the window of the hotel, "I think Ironhide lost his temper..." Lennox said thoughtfully going to the window, but nope, it wasn't a lost temper of a truck, but of a Mustang, it was Swallowtail who was starting to loose it.

Epps noticed that too, it meant trouble, an Autobot clearly concerned for its human counterpart meant something to Epps, who admired the Autobots and respected them, he loved riding within Optimus, the truck was both a good leader, and very comfortable. "Why is it, that after six years of this, nothing we plan works right? Its like there's monkey wrenches thrown into everything we plan. Mission City, we lost radios..."

"Because the defense grid was down." Lennox added, Epps nodded, he had 'enjoyed' that mission.

"Right, had to use stone age CB radios on that mission, then there was Shanghai, and Egypt, Egypt though we had no radios, lost dozens of people, even the Jordanians lost folks too." Epps said thoughtfully.

"And Chicago... that was freaky..." Lennox mentioned softly, recalling how he had almost fallen out of a freaking building.

"Right, that too, now its a year later and once more a monkey wrench is in the plan." Epps said, he meant Lake getting captured by Jack O'Neill

That made Lennox think, the only person they had met after the events a year before when the Autobots discovered the Ark on the moon, was Lake, and Swallowtail. "You mean meeting up with Lake was a monkey wrench?" Lennox asked

Epps shook his head, "No, Lake was a monkey wrench yes, but a pretty as hell Monkey wrench" He corrected.

"I like to think of her as a cat, as her reflexes and genetical structure resembles that of a feline more closely then that of a ape or monkey." Said Brains, he had brought up Lakes genetical profile onto his screen as he spoke, showing how closely it matched that of a snowleapoard then a sapient monkey. Lennox and Epps just looked at the screen.

"OK" Epps said, "Not a monkey wrench... a Catnip container" Lennox just broke down laughing loudly at the comparison for his friend

Outside the room Swallowtail was either pacing in her unit form, breaking windows as target practice at the rundown shut down hotel, or just pacing, Ironhide was thinking, and Crank was just told to shut up and not think as whatever the linebacker looking Autobots human as possible form looked like was very stupid, risky, or just plain dangerous for any of the Autobots to even so much as try.

But then Swallowtail spoke up to Crank, "I think he is thinking about a certain someone..." She said, not saying any names, but she meant Lennox's brother John's farm truck, Pinky. The F650 flatbed/dump truck farm truck was a heck of a looker and had enough weapons to match, or surpass Ironhide, but she had insisted that the black truck keep his rank as weapons specialist Pinky was better as a hunter instead.

"SWALLOWTAIL, SHUT UP!" came a rumbling voice of Ironhide as he knew who she meant, she shut up and ducked away, Ironhide was very protective of his friends, and had fallen in love, it was true. But he never admitted it... yet. But Swallowtail, as a scout knew it. Yep, he was thinking about Pinky.

* * *

><p>Deep within NORAD Mountain, known commonly as Cheyenne Mountain. There was a standoff between a woman dressed in Ancient Chinese style scarlet red clothing, and a brilliant white robot that came to the woman's elbow with four brilliant white optics for eyes, or whatever could be eyes.<p>

Opposite the woman in red and her comrade were three men, two of them aliens, one of them the man in command over her current not-exactly-an-enemy-but-nto-exactly-a-friend-known-as-Carter. Jack spoke up first at the sudden quiet after Mark has asked what Maximilian meant by, "a past event to be reconciled" It confused Jack. Though the mention of a Mustang searching for its owner made him stare at Lake. How did she know of what he said ?

"Alright, lets get this clear, Lake wants to get home free, Max wants to pick apart her robot friend, and me, I want another cup of coffee, though I am not yet sure of where you come in on this." Jack said pointing to Mark.

At the mention of pick apart, Frenzy turned his gaze towards Jack and seemed to be ready to fire his star-like weapons. Frenzy jabbered something in a weird language, but he quieted when Lake spoke up. "You are the man in charge here Jack." She said thoughtfully. "Where is General Hammond." she asked.

Before Jack could reply Max spoke up. "Apparently this little robot knows our kind from a battle against his kind a long time ago. You remember the defense satellite war." Mark nodded, "That was not just simple defense satellites, those were sentient machines like this one." Mark stared at Max as the other man spoke about a battle three thousand years before.

"Those machines tried to take down our own defense grid, tried to hack into NABIS, Thankfully it was only several isolated incidents where NABIS had isolated small pockets of virtual machines to keep the machines guessing at the time."

"What happened to the satellites then ?" Mark asked, now slightly calmer. Though clearly confused. "As far as I know, we lost dozens of men to those things before we were able to get them all offline. NABIS was unable to locate where they originated."

"Because when the battle was over, Amann insisted that we not peruse the matter further lest it begin a unwanted war with the same machines a second time." Max replied

"Well, they're here on earth now. That thing is one of them, and it is similar to the one that called himself a Cybertronian, he was smaller then that one, and blue with silver, not plain white." Mark replied, he was a soldier, not a debater or chatter type of man. "Why didn't I kill it when I had the chance ?" Mark asked turning his gaze from Lake and Frenzy towards Max, who stood at the conference table with his hands on the back of the chair at the table head.

"Had you destroyed that machine, we would have still met up with this one, and possibly woken up dead as the earth idiom goes. For the death of the smaller machine. In this case, the machine has yet to attack any of us, though six men are unaccounted for at the moment."

"Thanks to Frenzy they are out of the way, they will be fine, just slight headaches mostly." Lake said, Frenzy nodded like a maniac when the six men were mentioned. He had stunned the men when they got too close for his liking. Normally he'd have outright killed them all on the spot, but did not

Jack raised his hands, "Alright, that's it, you, start talking!" He said, for the first time actually loosing his temper to the need of wanting answers as fast as possible. He pointed at Lake as he spoke.

Lake smiled thinly, "even if I could tell you, you would not understand it at all. I have been with them for two years, and I am still meeting new Cybertronians almost on a daily basis." Lake said. She almost laughed as she spoke. "The little robot you wanted to kill, he belongs to me he is quite useful for a watchdog, loud screamer. I bet your ears are still ringing from that. Unless it was Starscream's concussion missile that made your ears ring like Notre Dames Bell Tower at noon." She said.

"Starscream ?" Jack asked, this was just getting stranger every day.

Lake nodded, "He was the one that threw me by a concussion blast alone from one of his many shots fired, through the window of that diner you were at. It was how I crashed into you. Though it was me that threw the car.. Standard procedure. Find any and all ways to protect innocent civilians whenever possible. Throwing the car was easy for a soldier like myself."

Jack remembered that she was similar to a Jaffa, she and Teal'c had gone head to head in the gym once, and the pair went for several hours, almost the whole night had Jack let them at the time. That was before Carter shot Lake in the knees at Death Valley. "That still does not explain the fact that you survived Death Valley, much less got back here or to New York." Jack said.

Lake smirked, "You'd be surprised of what some of the Autobots are capable of. Interracial Travel for one thing, made it easier to get from Four Corners to the Gobi Desert within minutes. Though Crank had to have a lubrication bath to get the dirt out of his main spark casing. Kept coughing up Energon for a day or so."

"Energon ?" Jack asked, what was that ?

"Their main source of energy and power, their life force so to speak" Lake replied.

"So why Earth ?" was asked by none other then Max, he was clearly fascinated by the machines.

"According to Optimus, the original intent was to get to the Alspark before the Decepticons got to it. If it weren't for Sam Witwicky, well, we'd be dead." Lake said, recalling what she was able.

"You never answered the man's question." Jack pointed out. Lake just looked at him, angered at the interruption.

"If you do not interrupt me I can answer it." She retorted to the man, Jack went quiet, Lake continued. "The Alspark came to Earth without intending to do just that, from what I understand the item wasn't discovered until 1913. President Hoover had the dam built around it in 1931. In 1934, Colonel Remus Witwicky brought with him a massive construct, a Decepticon, named at the time, NBE 1, Non biological extraterrestrial, one. With him was a good friend Joshua Simmons, who at the insistence of President Hoover started Sector Seven, which is now NEST, In other words, we are pretty much your Men In Black, for every major encounter with alien life."

Jack stayed quiet, as did Mark, Max however was confused. "Decepticons ? What are those ?" He asked, clearly curious.

"Decepticons are just that, they rely on deception and deceit to get the job done. Starscream you all saw a few days ago, Those that were fighting him were the Autobots Known mostly as the good robots verses the bad robots" Lake took a deep breath, she felt foolish, Galloway was going to verbally kill her and Lennox too for letting her get caught, not to mention blabbing pretty much everything about the last six years.

Lake turned to Jack, a pointed look on her face "Can I get off this base now before Swallowtail starts blowing stuff up looking for me." she said, making it clear that if she wasn't out within the next ten minutes, the Autobots would retrieve her by any means needed.

Jack took a deep breath. But before he could speak Frenzy had spotted the top portion of the currently shut down Stargate, the white robot jabbered something in a weird language and scampered to the window to see the 'gate in all its glory. Though the robot kept its weapons trained on Jack and Max, though Lake had lowered her own weapon. Jack spoke up. "Before you ask, yes it is. I still have questions though. What is Sector Seven ?"

"Was," Lake corrected

"I stand corrected then, was, what was it, I never heard of it before now." Jack said

"You never will hear of it again, at least until Galloway speaks to you after he chews out me and William." Lake said, already at her wits end, she never wanted to tell this man anything after what Carter had done to her and the three had to flee the area, leaving Lake to fend for herself for a few days to get taken to a hospital. Seeing t he look on Jacks face though told her to start talking.

She took a deep breath and started to explain, as simple as possible and as short as possible. "Sector Seven is a branch of the government that is above every law, if needed we can break the law or turn it in our favor. At the time, need for clearance for anything top secret wasn't a thing to worry about. Now we have become NEST, which is allied with the Autobots in an effort to protect Earth. And not just from the Goa'uld and whoever else want to try and attack, but from the Decepticons." she said. "any more questions."

Jack nodded, "yup, how'd you get out of the brig, you hungry, maybe I can get you something to eat." Lake just rolled her eyes as Jack rambled,

"Cut to the chase, _Colonel_." she growled, her sidearm was in a white knuckle grip by then and leveled at Jack. "Preferably before I pull the trigger."

Jack didn't flinch, a smirk played on his face. Frenzy had his weapons trained on Max and Jack, but not on Mark. The man was reaching for his own weapon at his belt. Jack spoke up, "Alright, I'll cut the chatter get to the point like you want. What do you want Lake, why are you even here, why did _you_ land in my soup yesterday morning on my vacation ?"

Three questions, three not so easy to answer, questions. Lake kept her gun leveled at Jack, "What do I want." She repeated, her hazel eyes took in the man carefully. Jack seemed calm about something, not the least bit worried for his own self preservation. "What I want is simple, 1, to leave this base and never come back, 2, to never have to speak to you or Carter again unless in dire need, which I am not, and 3, _I'm sick of this 'lets keep secrets from everybody' shit_. Clear to you yet. Most likely not, so I'll get to the point, the Autobots found what they call a Icegate on one of the nine moons of Cybertron, where they come from. What I want is to leave this base, _maybe even the whole fricking planet_, the first chance I get. Happy now." It was clear that Lake was loosing her temper.

Frenzy jabbered something and turned his weapons now on Mark and Max, Lake kept her gun on Jack. Lake nodded to Frenzy, the little robot started advancing, stepping lightly, and swiftly over the table to rejoin Lake, his weapons ready to fire. "Now that I have pretty much told m y life story of of what happened to me since I last saw you, or that." She pointed towards the top of the stargate, just barely visible over the window ledge, "Can we go now."

"Let me think." Jack said. Lake just looked at him, an angry look on her face, "thought long enough, no. You're staying on this base until I have the answers I need." Jack said, he turned to go into his office to start making some calls, Lake fired a single shot

"No Jack, " she snarled, "I am leaving this base, it is you who will be staying on it. In a bag if it must be thus" She said. The bullet smoked here it hit the steel door of the office. Two feet in front of where Jack stood. Frenzy now had both of his weapons aimed at Jack, ready to open fire. But before he was able to so much as blink, Mark crashed into Lake headlong like a Linebacker sacking the Quarterback in an American football game.

Lake went flying to the side, crashing into, and through, the conference table, sending it into many directions, her gun flew from her grasp, bonking first off Frenzy's head, then his shoulder. He chattered something in Cybertronian, clearly angered by the newest turn of events, his guns now on both Jack and Max, one of his feet on Lakes fallen pistol, which it promptly picked up with said foot and held it balanced impeccably perfect on one foot, like a ballerina.

Jack didn't care about the robot any more, he focused on the fight between Lake and Mark, Aslesian against a super soldier of earth, an earth more advanced then first thought. This was going to be a heck of a fight. Which was good because as Frenzy jabbered seemingly nonsense to both Max and Jack, he was actually relaying his location and the current problem.

* * *

><p>At the abandoned motel Swallowtail all but kicked in the door as she came running in as if out of breath, "Frenzy just contacted me, we have trouble, Lake is fighting another soldier called an Aslesian, one of the older legends come alive apparently, Lake is fighting one of them. According to Frenzy, both are forcing a stalemate between each other" The Autobot looked between Lennox and Epps. The latter of whom looked angrier the more Swallowtail detailed the current situation.<p>

Epps stood from the sofa he was seated on and picked up his weapon. Making sure it was loaded and that he had enough extra ammunition to get by should he need it, he looked to Lennox.

William stood there for a moment, Ironhide and General looking into the room through the broken door. The former in his truck mode for the moment as he surveyed the two humans and Unit and listened to the conversation between Frenzy and the mustang. Lennox nodded, "We go in, get Lake and Frenzy, and get out, nothing more. Make sure your weapons are set for as little injury as possible."

Swallowtail seemed to smile then and nodded, turning she left the hotel room and the hood of the mustang written over in Cybertronian markings split open, the Unit jumped into, shifting as it did so into the engine of the Mustang which rumbled to life, Lennox got into the driver seat as Epps got into Ironhides cab, the Triplets told to stay out of trouble were to come along as backup, and Wheelie informed to keep watch in case of unwanted guests after Brains again.

The two Autobots, along with the two humans drove from the abandoned hotel and rumbled towards the front gates of the NORAD outpost. Lennox had never driven within an angry car, but Swallowtail rumbled a stead purr as the Mustang written over in Cybertronian lettering turned a corner almost on two wheels

"Scout Swallowtail, we have news." Came the calm serene German accented voice of Brains, Wheelie was jabbering something like a crazy person. Crank was heard as well in the background saying something that sounded like "Five Energon Goodies on Lake!" and Zippy matching his bet, and Brains raising it by two, General raising it to an even ten, everyone just went quite when Wheelie bet his full ration of the stuff.

"Spill it" Swallowtail barked out the command.

"It appears that NORAD has more then just a simple research station at the base of the mountain. There are many units ready for combat at that base." Brains replied, he scanned through the local intranet system, "Two Black hawk gunships have been dispatched by NEST Base at the Pentagon to your location to assist as required, curtsey of General Morshower."

"That was nice of him" Lennox spoke up. Swallowtail agreed. "Anything else ?"

"Yes, expect a lot of resistance to get past the first of three checkpoints, and then there is the base within the mountain which has seen better days, an old missile silo apparently." Brains reported. "Wheelie and I have full control over the CCTV system and also access to the base files. Frenzy was correct, there is an Icegate here on Earth. Though somehow they call it a 'stargate' whatever that may mean. There is also references to several key staff members at the base as well, a Col Carter, a General O'Neill, and a Dr Jackson, among others"

Swallowtail grumbled, though to Lennox it sounded as if the engine roared with renewed speed. "Brains" the Mustang replied, "I want you to do a deep search and scan, find every file you can on Col Carter and how she is connected to Lake. Find out why Lake hates Carter so much. Also, have Wheelie up-link a video connection, we already have a wireframe layout of the base as it is."

"Confirmed," A minute passed and Lennox took a gentle turn to the right, according to Swallowtails internal GPS system, they were where they needed to be. The first of three roadblocks were there. There were two men at the gate.

Lennox saw them, "Epps, Ironhide, listen up. Wheelie's still got full on control over the bases security system, and has uploaded a feed to Swallowtail. From what I can see, Lake is currently in a martial battle with a roman like dude of some kind. Unlike Brutus, that guy was a hard nut to crack." Epps snickered, as did the hard light image of Ironhide

"So what's the plan?" Epps asked the unasked question, Ironhide voices his agreement to the question asked, basically saying in Cybertronian, 'what Epps said'

"Simple, get in, Get Lake, get out, leave as many unharmed as we can. You guys do have stun weapons right?" Lennox asked

"We do," Ironhide replied calmly as the two cars rolled up to the first checkpoint, to be stopped by the two men. Their computers not working both were on high alert. "EMP for all non Cybertronian systems, or selective screening, for certain items to not work, like walkie talkies for example." Ironhide said softly as a soldier went to Lennox's side of the car once he saw where the Mustangs driver seat was located.

"Identification Sir" the soldier, a corporal, requested, seeing Lennox rank of Major, Us Army. The site of the car was strange, why would a Army Major drive a mustang as beaten as that ? Apparently the man never knew a pair of Autobots were arriving to pick up one of their own.

Wheelies voice came over Ironhide and Swallowtails internal comm, "_I see both of you. Have Maj Lennox inform the gate guard to check his machine, you guys have just been added to the Meet with the Base Commander list in ten minutes._" If only Ironhide had a Pretender Unit like the Mustang did. Either way a hard light hologram was better suited Swallowtail sent a confirmed data burst back to Wheelie and gently informed Lennox by way of her glove compartment opening when he reached for it to retrieve his ID.

"Inform the soldier the Base Commander and yourself have an appointment in ten minutes," with it was his ID, and Epps as well. A digitized version was sent over to Ironhide behind Lennox and Swallowtail. Epps had his ID now, That made things easier Much easier.

Lennox replied to the man while picking up his ID and sliding down the window, handing over his ID he said, "I and the guy behind me have an appointment with the base command over certain devices of research needs." The soldier, a Corporal Tomas Adams, nodded and retreated to the guard shack, a minute passed and Adams returned.

"The guy in the following truck is Lieutenant Raymond Epps ?" Lennox nodded, Adams got into giving directions mode while handing Lennox back his driver license, "Alright,t you head up this road, to the next checkpoint, you'll get waved on through. At the last checkppoint is a parking lot, pick a space, any space. It don't matter, an Airman will lead you the rest of the way into the base to speak with General O'Neill." the man said waving both car and truck through.

"General O'Neill ?" Epps asked over the Autobots channel, "who's he ? Never heard 0f the man before."

"I haven't either, you know what this means, possibly a stiff necked guy like Galloway. But it doesn't matter, Brains got us in, he can get us out. Hopefully in one piece instead of dozens." Lennox turned around a bend in the road and the second guard post was wide open. "Looks like we're home free on this one. Lets get Lake and get out."

"Right, last I recall, Brains had the place informed that we'd be meeting with the base commander, Ironhide and I will remain outside to provide something of distraction, enough to keep the guards out here busy until the Nest choppers arrive." Swallowtail said

"Good plan, have we heard anything from Simmons or Morshower yet ?" Lennox asked.

"Just this" Swallowtail replied, She then repeated what she had received from Brains "'_Use Caution, Apparently the US Military had Colonel Lake One as a pet project. It is recommended to not ask her what it is meant by I am still searching for the proper file. Lake has worked with then Major Carter, and then Colonel O'Neill, it is advised that these two be sworn to silence or baffled with bullshit as quickly as possible_.' In other words, Lake is a very dangerous woman with hacked off, like I am a very dangerous Autobot when angered by something so trivial as this. According to Brains, Lake is more then a pet project, she's dangerous to everyone but us."

"Sounds like a plan, you saw how Lake was able to throw that car out of the way to protect the people in the restaurant on Broadway yesterday morning." Epps said thoughtfully as they parked and got out, the hard light image of Swallowtail scooted over into her driver seat, Whereas Ironhide merely opened a window and leaned out, a lightly bearded fellow with dark sunglasses, and a few Cybertronian markings on his shoulders and muscles. Light blond hair on his head and short beard. Like a biker

"You guys get Lake, we'll meet up with you at the other side of the base with the choppers." Ironhide said. Lennox nodded and shut the driver door of the Mustang behind him. Then he and Epps started for the nearby gatehouse to pass through. This was a battle zone. Or was about to be

As they walked Epps asked Lennox quietly, "You think you can bullshit a woman and get away with it ?"

"Only if she's blonde" Lennox replied, though he had no luck with Sarah, his wife, nor did he have any luck with his daughter Annabel. "… and hates computers" he added.

Little did either man know, as they were lead to an elevator to lead downwards to sub level 28, That Carter was blond, but she loved computers, and was so far doing pretty well at trying to get the radios working until the glass window upstairs in the briefing room shattered and Lake, and Mark fell into the gate room itself locked in combat.


	4. The Need for Speed

_Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 4; The Need for Speed_

Lennox flashed his ID to the airman on duty as he and Epps got to the last gate to pass through. As soon as they were allowed through the airman spoke, "It's going to take a bit longer then expected to get you guys to see the base commander, I can however get hold of Col Reynolds for the moment if that is doable for you ?" the airman, a Airman Matthews, said.

Lennox shook his head, "We're here to speak to the base commander, either we go to speak to him, or he comes to us" he said. That left little in the way of how Epps looked, a weapon clean out of Area 50 something or other most likely in his hands. The mini-sabot launcher looked like a weapon out of a scifi show. "Personally, I'd prefer we go to him. Now" He said.

Airman Matthews looked ready to call for help, but then nodded and said, "Come with me." Given their level of clearance, and the fact the men appeared to come from Area 51... Matthews thought it better to not hinder them. Matthews led the two men to the steel and concrete door that led into the base.

The three men stopped next to an elevator, Matthews pressed the button to activate it and bring it to the surface. Airman Matthews then spoke again "I wont be going down with you, when you enter, select sub-level 27, the Generals office is located on that level along with some meeting rooms." the doors to the elevator opened allowing Lennox and Epps to get into the thing.

Lennox pressed the desired floor button, which lit up. As soon as the doors closed Lennox activated his Cybertronian radio to Swallowtail, "We're in." He turned to Epps, a 'so far so good look on his face' and said "Do you want to contact Frenzy or should I ?"

Epps spoke "I'll do it." He keyed his radio to Frenzy's channel and spoke, "Frenzy, it's Epps and Lennox, where are you ?"

"_Watching a fight between Lake and a unknown assailant of Alesian origin." Came the reply, "I am also keeping two others from joining the fight, one of them a General. The other also an Alesian of some sort. He makes me nervous, I wanna shoot him!_" Frenzy always wanted to shoot anything he could. But this made it more imperative that he shoot at least one guy or two.

"Hold on on shooting anybody." Epps said casting a look towards Lennox who was watching the levels pass by, sub-level 18,... 19,... 20,... 21... flashed by. How low was this place anyhow ? "What level are you on ?" Epps asked out of the blue to Frenzy.

"Sub-level_ 27, overlooking a hangar that houses the Icegate on this planet, apparently used by the humans here._" Frenzy replied.

"Alright, we're in the elevator, just passed sub-level 24, should be there in a minute or less." Epps said, he turned off his radio and hefted his weapon. Lennox did the same. The pair stood ready in the elevator car as the doors parted and they were facing an empty hallway with the back of a man dressed in white robes ahead in the conference room of sorts. Frenzy's jabbering was also heard clearly.

Lennox motioned Epps forwards and the pair left the elevator, the doors slid closed behind the two men as they stalked forwards. They didn't worry about the security system, Wheelie's voice chirped over their radios saying "_I see you! Continue straight forwards and hang a left, for just keep going into the conference room where Frenzy is. Up to you guys_" the radios died. Lennox nodded and the two men lowered their weapons briefly and stalked forwards.

Upon entering the briefing room Epps and Lennox saw first three, well two people and a white robot keeping his weapons trained on the two human appearing men, one of them dressed like a roman senator of sorts. Lake was nowhere to be seen.

Frenzy saw first and foremost the arrival of Lennox and Epps into the briefing room, he jabbered something and scampered on three feet with three weapons trained on the two men over to the new arrivals. Keeping guard apparently.

Jack noticed the two men as well, and didn't recognise them, though he noticed that the apparently male robot recognised the two men, both of them wore military grade clothing, basic camo designed fatigues. And both carried weapons that Jack had never seen before. And they made him forget the fight in front of the stargate through the shattered window.

He turned to the two men, "Who are you ?" He barked the question more like a command that needed answering. He ignored Frenzy, the little robot had turned his white optics at him, but kept not just his weapons trained on him, but the hand-cannon that was Lakes sidearm, a .357 desert eagle could kill a man easy as one two three, jack knew. But his attention was on Lennox and Epps.

Lennox spoke first before Epps could say a word. The tech sergeant spoke to Frenzy in broken Cybertronian as Lennox spoke to Jack. "Major Lennox, Air Force. This is Tech Sgt Epps. We're here to speak to the base commander concerning a friend of ours named Colonel Lake."

Jack jerked a thumb at the shattered window. "She went that-a-way" He said, then he asked, "I take it you are the two guys she mentioned that would be looking for her, if any were sent. Wait, which one of you is her Mustang, you sure look it" Jack said looking at Lennox. That made Epps and Frenzy chortle, boy did this guy have it wrong.

Lennox shook his head, "I drive a mustang yes, but no I am not her, as far as I know Lake only loves Swallowtail, dotes on that car. Now, answer my question. Where is Lake ?" He asked again.

"I just told you, want to see the fight go down those stairs, and look through the first window you see, I'm going to make some calls." Jack said turning to go back into his office.

"You're coming with us." Epps said. "We've never been to this place before and you expect us to know our way around, I can barely find my way around m y own damned house in the dead of night during a power outage, and you think we can find our way around this place easy as snapping your fingers ? What are you ? Nuts or something ?" It was clear that Epps wasn't happy, he'd dealt with Galloway too much apparently. And was tempted as hell to shoot the man in the foot where he stood. Stockade or no stockade almost all the time whenever they met.

Jack threw up his hands "Alright, I'll lead you down stairs, what are you blind mice ?" Jack retorted right back, Lennox had to put a hand up on Epps weapon to keep the man from shooting.

"Just get us to Lake, and we'll leave, preferably with her. Before too much damage up top is done to your base when Swallowtail finds out we can't take Lake with us, deal ?" The look on Lennox's face said it all, he wasn't happy, and he hated being treated like a caged animal, and he felt for Lake.

Jack waved his hands in defeat, "Alright fine if that's the way you want it, that's how you're gonna get it, lets go." he said motioning the two men to preceded him. Frenzy jabbered otherwise and motioned at Jack and Max both to preceded the two men and the robot with both of his weapons and that of Lake which the robot held.

Jack motioned for Max to join him as Max seemed more and more focused on the robot and its strangely organic nature of how it could assume the form of something clearly alive and breathing like a human being. The fact that Mark wanted to kill the robot were it stood made things slightly worse for the moment.

Jack moved to the stairs, Max also moved that way, under the ever watchful optics of Frenzy as they did so. The little robot scampered along easily on three spider like feet. Epps and Lennox followed a few steps behind Frenzy. When they got to the lower level there was naught but bedlam as the two men saw for what must have been one of the few times where Lake fought hand to hand. Most of the fights she had done ended quickly, but not this one. This one was going to go on a long time.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile the Mustang sat where it was parked by Lennox, the black GMC truck parked next to it, shielding the guardhouse from seeing the smaller car as the two began the first part of their distracting those on the surface. Swallowtail seemed to sag on her struts and leaf springs as the mustang lowered herself closer to the parking lot pavement. A moment passed and a small canister was produced about the size of a apple. The mustang backed up a few centimeters or so and her right rear tire slid out and opened a manhole cover, dropping the time bomb, set to go off in half a minute. Into the thing, and then sliding the manhole cover back into place a millisecond later.<p>

"That's done, time to go. And make some mayhem, try not to kill anybody." Swallowtail said to Ironhide. Who just grumbled at her. With a rumble his engine started up, and he pulled away from his parking space. The holographic hard light images of the two drivers, a man and a woman, sprang into existance within both car and truck.

"Do you want to set off the charge now or wait a half minute ?" The question was asked in the span of a millisecond or two from Ironhide. The Sesimic charges carried by the Mustang packed enough power to blow a city sky high. Maybe even crack a planet.

"At last get clear and then set it off, that sucker will take most of the pavement under us and us with it. It did not fall very far." Swallowtail replied as they moved towards the checkpoint to leave the parking lot.

"Get going then, I'll back you up." Ironhide said pulling a bit to the side to let the Mustang take the lead. As they cleared the blast zone it was just in time as the charge went off, first without a sound, then a blast of blue energy and a sonic 'brong!' was heard as an earth shattering explosion of the Sesimic charge shattered cement, and power cables.

The explosion had the desired affect in terms of aftereffects. The reactions and actions of the military guard on duty was quicker then first expected. Two fire trucks were on the scene within a few minutes as smoke and blue fire roared in a crunch of cement and metal. Two cars were fleeing the location as quickly as they were able. One of them a mustang written over in strange writing and markings across its body. The other a massive black GMC Sierra 3500 TopKick truck.

It took only a scant few seconds, or in the case of the two Autobots providing the distraction, several milliseconds for it to dawn on the guardsmen that someone attacked the base. And they were trying to flee.

An alarm rang out. "that's our cue!" Swallowtail shrieked in Cybertronian as her engine rumbled loudly. Peeling rubber the mustang's engine growled and the car blasted towards the guard house and the gate that currently marked the first of three zones of escape.

"Ladies first." Came the dry humor filled response from Ironhide as the truck kept pace a car and a half behind the Mustang to shield it from the soldier's gunfire. Both truck and mustang blasted through the gatehouse. The guards scattering like mad. Yelling orders two of the guards opened fire on the fleeing vehicles. Bullets pinged off the rear bumper of the massive black truck, some of the bullets pinged off of Swallowtails bumper and driver-side rocker panel.

With a guttural scream of exhaust the Mustang floor the gas and blasted down the drive that led out of the parking lot, and towards the next gatehouse. Those at the next gatehouse were ready for them as the alarm had been sounded. They saw the two cars roaring towards the gates stupidly fast.

One guard got on his radio to those manning the two hummers nearby, "Open fire, aim to distract and not to harm. Force them off the road." As the command was given the hummers opened fire.

Gunfire splattered all around her as she weaved expertly between the bullets. Those that hit the Mustang pinged off harmlessly as the shields the Autobot possessed deflected the bullets without missing a beat. "WHEEEE!" Swallowtail shrieked as she weaved between trails of gunfire. Ironhide wove similarly to the mustang, but several car lengths behind by then, he didn't possess the shields that the scout had. But he did have her speed.

The Mustang blasted through the gate with a crash, leaving behind a partly created time bomb that did more to distract then kill. Similar to the charge that started the party, the smaller Sesimic charge exploded and set most of the nearby trees, and also the wall of the gatehouse, on fire. The soldiers scattered, those manning the hummers turned their weapons to follow the two fleeing vehicles, continuing to fire with weapons. Pinging at times off Ironhides bumper.

Ironhide noticed that the bullets kept up with them rather well, so he sent notice to Swallowtail. "They're following us, be ready for more resistance ahead."

"Copy that." Swallowtail replied "get along side me, I'm going to drop a few more small charges to slow them down, maybe some nail bombs will do the trick." Nail-bombs were something new that Lake and Epps dreamed up one night after Lake drank six Arabs and five Germans under a table and walked away stone sober. They were simple weapons, primitive sure, but useful and made quite a mess, plus they were quite harmless as well. Which made Swallowtail like them so much as they didn't even leave a dent in her own wheels.

"Copy that, coming on your left side. Sweetheart." Ironhide replied, the truck rumbled slightly louder and merged into the oncoming traffic lane and floor his gas, moving swiftly forwards to be in line smoothly on the mustangs left flank.

The two hummers did the same, driving side by side as they followed the two vehicles that were fleeing from the base. They were not expecting the back bumper of the mustang to part cleanly in half and drop a few balls of some kind. They bounced a few times on the road before exploding like tiny firecrackers. Nails flying in all directions.

During the insane driving race that the two Autobots were involved in, Brains spoke into their internal comm-links. "_Good news, Weapon Master Ironhide, Scout Swallowtail, the distraction you set off proved worthwhile, troops are readying for your arrival at the third gate. However Wheelie has full control over the cameras. Slow your pace and hang a right Scout Swallowtail, Weapon Master Ironhide, there is a road to the left at the same space for the turn that Swallowtail is to make. Split up and let the Black hawks take care of anything you encounter. Try not to use heavy duty weapons. You are to meet Colonel Lake, Major Lennox, and tech Sargent Epps with Frenzy at approx 1805 hours._"

The calm voice of the laptop computer was amazing stark contrast to the insane goings on that the two Autobots were doing. "What about the Stooges ?" Swallowtail asked.

"_You want them to perform any tasks that does not involve loss of human life ?_" Brains replied confused for once. What was the scout thinking ?

"Yes, have the boys head for gate three as maintenance men for the local army group and have them clear aside a section of hedge growth and fence. Plant two Sesimic charges there. Then flee the area after rebuilding the fence. Set detonation by remote to Ironhide." Swallowtail said giving orders. Orders from Optimus were to listen to Swallowtail when he was not around, that went double for Ironhide. Though the larger Autobot was not phased by the order. But he went with it, and often turned to the Mustang for advice. Though it was his apparent dry humor that got them through their missions.

"_Understood, Your turns are arriving. Good luck to both of you._" the connection died as Brains got busy giving out fresh orders to the now nearly drunk with boredom set of three brothers. Larry Moe and Curly, known commonly as Zippy, General, and Crank.

1805 hours. Swallowtail thought, that was four and a half hours away. More than ample time to get in, get Lake, and get out. So why wait until that long ? The Mustang got onto her internal comms, "Brains, come in."

"_Here_" came the calm German accented reply.

"Why 1805 hours ? Why not now ?" Swallowtail took her turn as Ironhide did the same, his rear bumper blending in amazingly with the shadows of the thick trees. Swallowtail was more in the open and racing down a dusty road, leaving a massive dust trail in her wake. Perfect to hide in, and even better to get lost within as well and double back.

"_It appears that Colonel Lake is currently in midst of a battle of wits between old friends. I advise you to not get involved, according to the video feed, Lake is holding well against a Alesian._" Brains replied, He connection the video feed, the image appeared on the windshield of the mustang, as if it were a TV screen. It showed the feed that Wheelie was seeing. The ice-gate, and Lake before it, bleeding from a few small cuts to her arms, fighting a massive bulk of a man in roman like armor.

The mustang's engine growled loudly. At the sight of the man, "Alesian..." She repeated. "Brains, new orders for you, find and identify all non human elements of life minus Frenzy, myself and Ironhide within the base proper, upload a feed directly to me, I want everything. Military records if you have them as well." The Mustang spun her wheel and twirled around in a spray of gravel and dirt. A flick of a switch and a pair of machine guns appeared.

"_Confirmed. Data search in progress._" Brains replied, a millisecond passed and data appeared on Swallowtails windshield. Listing first a man named Teal'c, along with an extensive military record in Earths services. The next line listed a woman named Vala Doran. A woman the mustang detested greatly. Then a group of men, listed first as Commander Mark, commander, Alesian second legion. Then two lesser commanders, Gaius, and Vali. All three of them Alesian, then came another few names, these were medical apparently. Max, Martha, Marie, and a few others, also listed as Alesian. "_Data search completed._" Brains said, a total of ten names had been found.

"Alright, looks like our fun had gotten started, Ironhide, are you getting this ?" Swallowtail asked. A confirmation beep came from the truck as it stayed put, he too had turned around and withdrew small arms weapons. The two chain guns rested on his side fenders, whereas Swallowtail's weapons popped out of her hood and head lights. "Lets do this!" She rumbled as her engine growled.

The mustang seemed to smirk to Ironhide as she sat high on her leaf springs and struts, trying to keep off the dirty pavement most likely. Ironhide had to smile himself, Swallowtail wasn't young, but older then he after his return from the Well of the Alspark a year before. He remembered only so much, though was happy to hear that his killer was killed by Optimus at the time.

The two hummers rumbled past, leaving the gates wide open behind them as they passed the side roads. Perfect. And a chirping noise Swallowtail pulled into view. Turning towards the two hummers she smirked, and backed up. The drivers of the hummers ahead didn't notice the mustang until one of their gunners saw Swallowtail backing up like a crazy woman driver.

Both hummers turned around and tore after the fleeing backwards Mustang, which opened fire on both trucks as they got closer. The car then halted and continued to fire as Ironhide rumbled from his own hiding spot and fired off an EMP burst that flattened tires forcing the two hummers to halt. At the same time two Black hawk helicopters arrived in the air.

"What I wouldn't give to have my favorite Eyes in the Sky" Swallowtail murmured, meaning her friend Oakley, the small UAV made for great stealth and movement. Oakley was the best pair of eyes that the Autobots could have when Lift was busy, the fact that Renty as Ironhide called him was going to be sent on yet another mission marked as the Shuttle Atlantis, made the Mustang snicker at the time, last launch, yeah sure.

{You called, Boss ?} Came a comm reply as the familiar tone of Oakley's voice chimed in her ears over the comm.

{Oakely ?} The Mustang asked as she continued to back up and spun a one eighty and fled up the road towards the base main gate. Ironhide right behind the Mustang

{Who else would call you, 'Boss', Boss ?} Though that was true, Swallowtail was not a Boss 302 Mustang, but a GT500 Queen of the Road Mustang. {Heads up, fighters, from Nellis, apparently alerted by the base soldiers of your little bomb scare, nearly scrambled my circuits again.}

{At least Impact didn't do it} The Mustang replied with a clear snicker to the comm voice, {Anything else ?}

{Yes, Galloway says hi, and also wants Lake home ASAP, also, if its possible Galloway also wants the base commander of NORAD, a General O'Neill to report to General Morshower. He didn't say what about though. I'm thinking us} Oakley reported, the pale green UAV kept up in the clouds and was able to hover in one place and move around and keep an eye on the scene below.

{Anything else we need to know ? Other then Lake has some old friends in the base.} Swallowtail relayed the information that Brains sent her, Oakley snickered, yep, Lake worked on that base before, made a few enemies.

{So that is who she means by alien fellow being the strong silent type} the UAV chortled. {Where's Epps ?} She liked Epps, thought the guy a total riot, and worth being with, worked hard and did good, that was him in a nutshell.

{Looking for Lake. That's all I know.} Swallowtail replied, {See anything I need to know for here on the ground ?}

{Other then two dozen soldiers waiting for you guys up front, not much. Anything you want me to do ?} Oakley asked.

{Yes, keep an eye on the sky, if any unwanted guests arrive keep them busy and let the Black hawks know.} the Mustang replied as she floored the gas and tore up the pavement, unlike the Wing City Thermacrete pavement. This stuff was more brittle.

{Sure thing, …. Uh Boss...} Oakley said giving a through scan of the transports following them.

{What ?} Swallowtail asked. Not expecting to get the slag scared out of her for the first time that month.

{You do know that Hive is a km and closing on your current position right ?} Oakley said. Hive was a massive Decepticon scorpion, his alt form was a massive 8x8 truck

That did it for the Mustang, {WHAT ? Hive here ?} The Mustang did a 180 once more and drove backwards, her wiremap blinked a scarlet, Decepticon, it was then identified as Hive, Oh slag, dear Primus no! And there was no Tunnel Bridge network either like on Cybertron Gamma. Just slagging wonderful!

{Do not worry, we can handle him, together.} Came the calm voice of Ironhide. Hive was a massive 'Con sure, against smaller or inexperienced Autobots he could easily sweep them away, but if those Autobots were Ironhide or Ratchet, Or Bastion for that matter, Hive was better off turning tail and fleeing. But hive didn't turn to flee, he continued moving forwards, intent on getting to Swallowtail. The scout got him into all sorts of traps on Zulu, and he wanted to 'thank' her for that.

{He's all yours} Swallowtail replied to Ironhide, {Oakley, inform the Black hawks that a 'Con is also here, focus on the 'Con, he's tagged for their radar systems.} a blip mark appeared on the wireframe map that the Autobots had installed on the humans radar systems. Showing in blue the good guys, and in red the 'cons.

* * *

><p>In the gate room Mark and Lake traded strikes and parries. Mark a seasoned warrior of Alesia fought mostly on the defensive as the woman, known as Lake by these humans, fought with a strange energy, never seeming to tire as she traded blow for blow, strike for strike, seeming to easily shrug off his own blows towards The woman was a super soldier, created by Dr Daniel Marks, the current vice president of America after Kinsey stepped down after the Anubis Incident.<p>

They were both bleeding a little bit after shattering t he window upstairs to fall to the ground, both had gotten up pretty quickly when Lake had sprang to her feet and went to land her right foot on Marks' windpipe, only to have it grabbed and she was sent flying to the side, denting the rail to the stargate. She set one foot against the thing and wrenched a pipe that was used for a rail guard piece to let a MALP to get onto the ramp to the gate to use as a weapon.

Mark blocked each strike from the improvised weapon and soon wrenched it from Lake's grasp as she went into a martial stance, Mantis. The pair then traded blows again, sparks exploded from a power panel as Mark swung and Lake ducked at the last second, the pipe made contact with a power box, sending sparks flying everywhere.

Lake was on Mark in an instant, the pair danced all over the gate room Lake easily blocked each strike aimed at her face or chest with her arms, hard smacks and cracks were heard as Mark connected several times to her ribcage. One of those hits sent Lake flying backwards. The woman crashed into the cement wall and broke it in a few places, causing dust to fall and pieces of broken cement also to hit the gate room floor. A ring of several sizes was where she had connected to the cement. Thermacrete was more painful, and a hell of a lot harder.

Mark backed up quickly as Lake came onto him again, a flurry of blows and one of them connected as Mark attempted to block them all, the one that connected slammed into his midsection like a semi truck on speed. Sending the man flying. Once again Lake ran forwards to slam her foot onto the man's windpipe when Mark kicked up his own feet, tripping Lake, she scrambled backwards as fast as she was able.

As the pair fought Jack and Max entered the control room, Sam sat there mouth agape as she watched Lake fight with the Alesian so well. Doubtless both would need medical attention when the fight was over. This was madness.

Jack spoke up, startling Carter as Max took a seat at a terminal that control the stargate, he started typing, looking up recent addresses dialed, and found one, Caxlis II, perfect, they could activate the gate, and hope both fighters went through, then the Vestra could pick them both up so they could question Lake.

Frenzy saw everything going on and growled slightly as he watched Max carefully. The little white 'bot nudged Epps and flicked his head towards Max as Jack spoke to Carter, "You alright Carter ?" Epps raised his weapon slightly as he watched Max's actions.

"Yes sir, just a little shaken, I didn't think the plate glass window upstairs was breakable" she said. Her eyes on the fight between Alesian and super soldier

"If it is made to not break, chances are it will get broken." Lennox spoke up as he stepped forwards, staring at the gate, and focused on the fistfight before it as the stargate activated and the I inner ring started to spin. Uh oh. "That must be the Icegate Brains keeps referring to" Lennox mused to himself.

Frenzy saw what was going on on the screen in front of Max and chattered frenetically, he didn't like where this was going. The first chevron locked, Frenzy found the PA system, and chattered into it in Cybertronian, though Lake understood it clearly, "Lake, get ready to run! The ice gate's starting up!" He should have also said to get ready to duck, but didn't think of that part as Lake made a mad dash for the 'gate and jumped, slamming hard on the steel of the ramp to the gate, bringing up a piece of it, smacking Mark in the chin, though Mark got to his feet and tackled Lake off the ramp to the cement floor in a heap just as the gate activated and did its kawoosh.

Lake and Mark tussled for a moment more before Mark sank to his knees when Lake struck him hard between the legs before turning and making a mad dash up the ramp and swan dove through the gate seconds later it shut itself down with a clank and whoosh. As she ran for the activated Stargate she chattered to Frenzy into her radio 'Memorize the address!'

Frenzy went crazy, Epps shot Max in the back with his sabot launcher, knocking the man to the floor, Frenzy locked his weapons on Carter, all three of them, one of them being Lakes own sidearm, Lennox had his weapon on Jack.

Jack held up his hands "Whoa, whoa, stop!" He said as Max muttered something and started to pull himself up. His shield had failed from the round hammering it, the force of the weapon dropped him to the floor, but he was otherwise just fine. "Put the guns down!"

"Start talking General, We came to get Lake and take her home, and if our Intel is correct Lake is dangerous to everyone but me, Epps and Frenzy's friends. Now where did that thing lead to ?" Lennox said, he didn't care at the moment of rank, he had a weapon on Jack at the moment, and he'd be damned if he had to tell Swallowtail bad news.

"Just put the guns down and we can talk this over." Jack said trying to give orders, Carter just stared at the shutdown gate, Mark got to his feet looking towards the 'Gate, She and I have a date, he thought to himself. She fought dirty, like an Alesian. Somehow Mark found himself liking the woman. she fought like an Alesian, dirty and brutal, and painfully to the point, he thought rubbing at his eyes with one hand.

Up top, when Frenzy had notified the Mustang, Swallowtail let out a loud long wailing cry as the one she called a very dear friend had disappeared...


	5. Project SOLDIER part 2

_Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 5; Project S.O.L.D.I.E.R. {part 2} The Failed Project Revealed_

Lake stalked through the corridor of the Tenbro, an old military outpost she had found on a mission with SG1, after Max activated the Icegate, she dove through in order to get away from the alien man. But before she had done so she ordered Frenzy to memorize the address or whatever was used to get to that place. Where-ever she was. It was like earth, only, not earth.

She had thrown away her weapon, there was no ammo left for it that she could find. So it was left at the other Icegate. Though it was strange to her, the icegate in question was in the middle of a small city of sorts. A town maybe. No, she had been there before, Tenbro.

She stalked through the stone corridors, no windows, the place was a maze of passages, narrow enough for two men to walk side by side and carry something slightly wider then them. Possibly in armor, the woman thought. This place is insane. Whoa! She came to a fast halt when she spotted a window, she snuck up to it. There was a light in the place. She leaned over and looked through slightly. The light was natural light apparently. She moved on. The place was a maze.

She found herself thinking of that other S.O.L.D.I.E.R. Of six years before. Another one, like her, only this time male. And bred perfectly. Following orders to the letter. And his orders were simply, hunt down Lake, and kill her. Which so far was no easy task. The woman had already killed a platoon of soldiers, hell she destroyed a town, wiped it off the map in Egypt ten years before.

That other Soldier, Mark had nearly gotten her at that place, if it wasn't for Frenzy's frenetic screaming at her to run like mad, Lake would have been killed. For all she knew that soldier was dead. What alarmed her the most was the Icegate starting up and Frenzy screaming. So she had run, dove thru the icegate and appeared... At Tenbro, on Calxis. She just hoped that soldier didn't follow her.. She turned a corner in the passage, the place was lit as if naturally so. Which made her nervous, what could feed light into a place like this ? After all this was an alien world, it was Tenbro, the place was a maze.

She found herself wondering who had trained that soldier, who called himself Mark, he stank to high heaven of something, and it made her nervous. Frenzy had mentioned the man being part of an ancient group that were hated, and also watched closely, by the Cybertronians. She flexed her muscles, her shoulders were slightly sore from the fist fight she had just finished. Doubtless the man, or alien man, was suffering some form of discomfort. A charged foot to the groin could land anybody on their knees grabbing at their tender spots in pain.

But that man did not do as she expected, Lake saw that pain exploded in the man's eyes when she first kicked him between the legs, then swept his feet from under him, either he hit the edge of a rail and blacked out, or the pain was too much as the stargate was activated to the last address dialed at the time. Which led her there. Now, where exactly was... there. She wondered. She then found herself wondering how Lennox was taking it. Most likely not well. Swallowtail even worse.

She leaned against a sand brick wall, clutching at her side in pain, ribs she heard crack were sore at that spot, she leaned over and spat blood, well, there was going to be a rematch, even if it killed her. That solider hurt her dearly. Doubtless Galloway wouldn't be happy about it either.

* * *

><p>"Alright, start talking, <em>General<em>. We were told to talk to you, and therefore, we're talking to you. So start talking, before I start shooting." Lennox said. He hated it when there were people trying to talk him down when inside he knew what was right, and what was deadly wrong. Lake was gone, for all Lennox knew, for good. Thanks to the meddling Alesian Epps just shot in the back. Thankfully the creatures' shield had negated most of the shot, but the mini sabot round had overloaded the thing, the device overcompensated itself trying to stave off the heat. Causing it to fail. The kinetic energy of the sabot round though had knocked the guy to the floor.

"put the gun down soldier, Under Home world Security directive I'm ordering you to put your weapon down." Jack started to say, using his official title of director of HWS. Only Epps spoke up.

"Home world Security don't exist." He said, besides it was homeland security wasn't it ?

Lennox nodded, "That's right we don't take orders from people who don't exist." He said taking a fast step forwards as Jack spoke again.

"I'm going to count to five..." Jack began

"Well I'm going to count to three." Lennox cut him off, he had his handgun out and aimed towards Carter.. Jack went quiet, Carter didn't move, "Where did that thing lead. Start talking, preferably now." Lennox sometimes hated his job.

Jack was silent for a minute before someone spoke, it was Max, "Calxis Two, a satellite moon, mostly a city. Known commonly as Tenbro" he said, he looked at Epps, though not with anger, but confusion.

"Why did you connect the thing to there ?" Lennox asked lowering his weapon slightly away from Carter.

"I was hoping both fighters would go through, but only one went. Without Mark the Vestra cannot pick up the woman." Max replied, Mark still stood in the gate room staring at the shutdown gate.

"I don't like the sound of that" Epps spoke up. Lennox didn't either.

"Neither do I "Lennox agreed quietly before asking to Max"pick up ?"

Max nodded, "Yes, I wanted to speak to the woman on equal terms. No weapons, no truth serum or any thing of the sort. Just her and I in a talk." Max replied, Mark heard that and snickered, he knew what it meant.

Lennox snickered, "Lake wouldn't talk to you, the only time she opens up to anyone, if at all, which is very rare, is to Swallowtail, that GT500 knows a lot and is close friends with Lake, and if you value life like we do, you'll reconnect that thing right now."

It was then that Frenzy pulled on Lennox's belt and whacked at his own head, as if saying, radio, use the radio! Frenzy scampered over to the terminal that Max used and dialed the gate, the gate swung into motion then. Perfect. Lennox activated his radio, "Lennox" He said.

"_Major, news from home base for you_" Came a calm German accent, it was Brains. "_Galloway wants Lake, and yourselves, and the base commander at Pentagon NEST war room as soon as humanly possible._"

"That's good to know." Lennox said casting a look to Jack, the man stared right back at him acting bored, already Lennox disliked the man. Optimus was not going to be happy either. "We lost contact with Lake at the moment, trying to reestablish contact with her now, when we do, we'll get in contact with home base."

"_Understood, Brains out_" the connection died just as the stargate connected.

Lennox activated his Cybertronian comm link, "Lake come in. It's Lennox" He said. He hoped he'd get a response... And hopefully save his hide against the wrath of an angry Autobot

* * *

><p>Lake leaned against a sandstone wall and slid to the ground, hugging at her beaten side, from the feel of things, she had a bruise. Her comm link chirped, "<em>Lake come in<em>" Lake snickered, spat some blood and keyed her radio.

"I'm alive" She said.

"_You don't sound too good_" Lennox said over the radio.

Lake snickered, coughed out a laugh and replied "No, really. Major, get your facts straight man, did you get the number of the truck that hit me." Lake asked.

There came a snicker over the radio, "_No, though we got the driver. Galloway wants us all home in DC as soon as possible, can you get back to the... icegate as Frenzy calls it and come home ?_"

Lake took a deep breath and struggled to her feet, "Do me a favor Major, keep that guy ten paces from me at all times, Frenzy between me and he at all times as well, maybe I can return."

"_I can do my best_" Lennox replied,

"Good, then I'll come home. Answer me this, there is nothing to grab me when I try to access the dial device is there." That was a hard question to answer

It took a few minutes before she got an answer, "_Negative, there was a ship inbound to where you're at on another planet apparently, Max called it off, for now at least, you're home free._"

"Copy that, see you in a few minutes. Have a Pepsi waiting" Lake said, Lennox snickered as the connection died, Lake loved Pepsi just as much as she loved rum. The woman struggled to her feet, with one hand on her side that she could feel a bruise forming she headed in the direction she had come, leaning at times against the wall as she walked.

Finally she made it to the dial home device. She knew the address for home, hopefully they kept the Iris open. Where the hell was Hammond anyhow ?

* * *

><p>Lennox snickered at the last comment from Lake, wanting a Pepsi, of all things, the woman nearly got killed and she wanted a Pepsi, well, Lennox knew the hard way to get the woman what she wanted, he reached into his vest and pulled out a item no larger then a drink can. It was blue and white, marked PEPSI. Yep, Lennox learned to be prepared<p>

He looked at Max, "Something tells me that you did not intent fully to just talk to Lake, I don't know what it is, but I will find out later." He said, he turned to Carter, "You must be Sam Carter, Lake said she and you had a fit and you shot her in the knees, care to explain that ?" Lennox was walking on thin ice, he knew it, but didn't care. Lake was his friend and in some cases, his commanding officer.

"There was a mission to Death Valley California six years ago, shortly after the Mission City event, Lake was with us, we paired off to try and access a information hard rive in the city, Jack and I went to access the drive, Teal'c and Lake kept watch, Daniel was home sick."

"Doesn't explain why you shot Lake, Blondie" Epps muttered, he hated it when friends of his got injured for no reason whatsoever.

Carter glared at him at being called Blondie, "As I was saying the system was encrypted, I wasn't able to crack it, Lake was, she gloated about it so I shot her to shut her up."

"You shot Lake to shut her up, she rarely talks, much less gloats." Lennox said, half tempted to raise his weapon at Carter and demand the truth.

"lake annoyed me to the point of my shooting her twice in the knees to shut her up, our pick up location was too far for us to carry her with us so we slated her for pick up later, and left, when we went back to the location we tagged where she was she was gone." Carter said. Not giving any details to the cat fight the two had before lake was shot, telling only the part that led up to their fight and the shots to the woman in reds knees. Doubtless Lennox, or Galloway would probe it out of her later.

Epps then helped Max to his feet, a mostly apologetic look on his face for the misunderstanding, now things were going the right way for once. At least nobody was dead, yet. Once they could get things cleared up, Maybe things would work out better for the team and for Lake and Swallowtail. "I think" he said after a minute, "We need to call Galloway, or at least get hold of Oakley and get a message to home base" he said thoughtfully.

Lennox nodded, "Lets first get Lake home and out of here." he said turning towards Jack, He had put his weapons aside by then and re-holstered his sidearm. "Sorry about earlier sir, but for one thing there is a lot to explain and not enough time or resources to explain it properly, I think it best you come with us. We can explain things better in Washington."

"Before anyone goes anywhere first thing is first." jack said, in the span of two minutes things went from normal to FUBAR at the exact drop of a hat. "How am I gong to get that window replaced upstairs ?" To that Lennox had no idea how to answer.

* * *

><p>Up top Swallowtail twirled around and parked herself in the road, The red blip that marked Hive got closer. Lake was gone for all she knew, and the Autobot had no idea where the woman had gone for that matter. The Mustang sat their, its weapons disappearing into its hood, as did the holographic hard light of its driver. It sat there, seemingly empty. Several soldiers advanced on the car, their weapons drawn and ready to fire.<p>

Hive noticed that his prey had stopped moving, the truck snarled {That's right my pretty bird!} and seemed to gain speed, greater then what it was able to sustain properly. With a grumble that rose to a strange chorus the truck rumbled forwards down the lane, faster and faster as it blasted through a barricade of trucks and rumbled towards the Mustang.

With a growl the 8x8 rumbled to a sudden halt, all but dumping those inside it all around him. "Hello Pretty Bird." came a grumbling voice as the engine of the massive truck rumbled loudly. The engine of the mustang remained silent. Out of either fear or otherwise. But mostly fear. The sudden guttural roar from the truck made the car backup a few meters, though the soldiers scattered backwards, scared for their lives.

Swallowtail stood her ground, but backed up a few meters when Hive roared at her. Two hummers rumbled into view, only to halt and stare at the massive 8x8 truck that blocked the road ahead, and the tiny car between the three military transports.

What surprised all of them was the sudden transformation of the massive truck into a even larger scorpion. With a roar the Decepticon transformed, parts changing into limbs large enough to sever anything, a long tail curled over it. Six legs hammered the pavement, two pincers replaced by massive cannons made the car back up again, though she bumped the front grillguards of the two hummers, which then opened fire on the massive metal bug as Swallowtail shrieked one word. A name. {IRONHIDE!}

The guttural roar of a truck dropping from nowhere was heard as Ironhide appeared and transformed and latched onto Hive, the massive scorpion roared and fired, plasma bolts and fire raked the trees, and scorched pavement.

Two helicopters appeared overhead. Radio chatter was heard on the two Autobots comms, "NEST Black Hawk 211 to Home base, we have target in sight, location, within NORAD borders, orders."

"Take out the 'Con at all costs. Get the rest out safely." Morshower replied as he watched the live feed from the black hawks on the screen in front of him. A Decepticon so close to home. NORAD was a research station. So why attack there ? What was there ? Morshower picked up a file that was placed on his desk, he'd gone through the thing twice over, and each time it was about Lake as a soldier, a killing machine, practically a Decepticon, but after five years the project was classed above top secret, and not even Sector Seven knew of it.

And that was why Galloway was currently banging on Morshowers office door, "Come in, Mr Galloway. Glad you could get here on such short notice." With Galloway was the Vice President, Dr Daniel Marks. "Vice President" Morshower shook both mens' hands and the three went over to a few sofas to sit and talk over why the two men came.

Galloway spoke first, seeing the battle on the monitors. "Another attack ?"

Morshower nodded, "Yep, on one of our research stations, NORAD. Apparently this so far is just one Decepticon. At the moment at least." Ironhide was riding, literally, the massive scorpion. "Though I thought the scorpion was dead." According to the mission report Morshower received from Lennox, Scorponk was dead thanks to Jetfire.

"Apparently its not, I take it Ironhide is on the scene of this one ?" Galloway spoke up, Morshower nodded, "Who's the other one, I don't recognise the car" he pointed at the Mustang who transformed on the monitor and joined Ironhide on the massive scorpion.

"That is Swallowtail, an Autobot scout, one of few Autobots out with humans, in particular, Colonel Lake." Morshower explained, which made him turn to the Vice President, "Which makes me wonder why you're here sir."

"Very simple." Dr Marks replied in a thick Arabic accent, "Project S.O.L.D.I.E.R, and Project L.A.K.E. One were two covert government projects overseen by myself and several high ranking generals and medical staff at the time. This was 20 years ago General. Lake One was the first soldier to be created, at the time the project was considered a success due to the survival rating and combat rating that Lake performed under when under stress. It was not until five years later when Lake escaped and somehow rebelled against her true being."

"Grew a conceince as Lennox calls it" Morshower cut in, "It still does not make sense, Lake never spoke about her past or how she knew what she knew, nor does it give any reason that her car and Ironhide are at NORAD at the moment trying to retrieve her."

"From the looks of things..." Galloway said with a smirk "… Not only have they tried to retrieve her, but there is a Decepticon there, and from my experience, where there is one, there is more in hiding."

Morshower nodded, "That is true, the incident in Shanghai was proof of that, there were two Decepticons, one was trying only to hide according to the log." He turned back to the VP, "But that does not explain why they'd go to NORAD, what is there ?"

"The Stargate, Lake was part of a team that went on missions off the planet through a device called the Stargate, according to some recent files that was six years ago, around the time she started getting around, we were only able to track her as far as the Everglades fourteen years ago when we lost the trail" Marks replied.

"We received word that Lake was taken prisoner there, one of our contacts who were with Lake at the time made contact with a nearby team with their location, NORAD, for all we know Lake was taken prisoner, but why there ?" Morshower asked.

"Lake made a few enemies." Marks explained, "One of those enemies she doubtless ran into when she was caught, if her enemy works at NORAD like I think she does, Well, that's most likely where Lake is at the moment. Though why the Decepticons are there is beyond me."

"The Icegate" Morshower said thoughtfully, "The Decepticons are are after the Icegate, whatever it is or whatever it does, they want it, Optimus said something of a possible link back to their home world through the Icegate. From what I was able to deduce from him the Icegate was a device uncovered in the war on t heir home world of Cybertron, one of the nine moons is where the Icegate was uncovered as they call it." He explained, "If Lake was taken to where this worlds Icegate was kept, chances are the Decepticons also know where it is."

"That is true. Though I fail to see how the Cybertronians are in on this equation" Marks replied.

"What I fail to see Mr Vice President, is how this file on one of our best field operatives claims she was once the pet project of the United States military. Explain to me how that is, she never spoke about it to us, and as far as I know, not even the Autobots know." Morshower said ignoring the question of how the Cybertronians fit into the mix.

"Lake was built to be the perfect soldier, in 1995 the project was started between me and one colleague, once we got founding though the Military fund through President Graves' administration Project Soldier was started. It was a top secret project, nobody knew of it, not even President Graves knew of it." Marks explained.

"In 1998 there was the wars in Bosnia, Lake and two others were sent there for recon work, Lake somehow had a crash course in friendship with some of the local kids in the countryside. Next thing we knew, word leaked to her somehow shortly after reconditioning. Lake fled, this you know. But before she fled she wiped a city of the globe. On her own. Because of the loss... of a supposed friend. A city was destroyed" Marks said.

"Its funny" Galloway said, "There was nothing on official documents of Lake being a pet project, or a killer. Nothing like that on her resume." Morshower had to agree, Lake had a questionable past, and never spoke of it to anyone, he doubted the woman even told her car anything of her past life.

"So why know this now ? Why not sooner ? Without any Decepticons breathing down our necks ?" Morshower asked pointing at the monitor, the black hawks hadn't opened fire yet as the two Autobots were fighting the massive scorpion. The Black Hawks were awaiting Morshowers orders.

"The plan for me was to find Lake before anything else happened, when I heard that a woman dressed in scarlet was seen in New york at the same time a bunch of robots were fighting each other I knew it was Lake, it was then that Lake disappeared. And now she is at NORAD, doubtless with old friends or enemies or something." Marks said. "Either way, Lake is a soldier, strong, able to withstand far more then anything thrown at a normal human being. Not even your Major Lennox could survive as long as Lake is able to do so on her own."

Marks withdrew a medical report. And handed it to Morshower, "University of California Hospital wrote up this medical report on hearing everything the woman in red said to them, she fought another six days before, then was shot in both knees from behind. UofC had a medical system that could easily repair the injuries she had taken, the fact that she managed to walk at all amazes even myself."

"So Lake had this fight with another, in Death Valley California. In hundred ten plus heat, and survived on her own until getting to a hospital." Morshower repeated reading the report. "Shows strong hint at surviving in any condition."

Marks nodded, Galloway looked thoughtful. "So.. how does general Jonathon O'Neill fit into this ?" He asked

"Jack O'Neill oversees NORAD, known to certain groups as the SGC, Star Gate Command, I was informed of the group at the time of being sworn in as vice president and started looking actively for Lake, even posted a few notices online and in media of a soldier deemed lost in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. At the time I was hoping she'd respond, but she avoided my men like the plague, ghosted most of them when they tried hunting her in the Everglades. Most of the dead washed up in the Gulf beaches, some of them not well off or even recognisible."

"So you posted news stories in the local papers, hoping people would some how recognise your play toy" Morshower said, apparently ill informed. Seeing one of his best men as a military play toy, made him wonder if his job was worth keeping.

"Lake is not the toy of the united states military" Marks replied after a few minutes of thought, Morshower had struck a nerve. "Lake is more then that, when we started Project Soldier, we needed someone we could use the file and experiences from, and preprogrammed into her DNA stream that information, she is naturally strong, even though she does not look it. She speaks mandarin more then English, she appears Asian, somehow the DNA string came out as Asian. Young woman. Its been twenty years to the day that she stepped out of that stasis tube. And 15 years since she fled from our control."

"That still does not explain why Lake is a pet project of the military, of yours." Morshower pressed. Galloway looked thoughtful, as far as he knew Morshower was digging his own grave. "Lake is one of our best field operatives with the Autobots against the Decepticons."

"Lake is also my daughter, I created her, at the time I was childless, no family to call my own, so I made Lake, I knew for a fact I wasn't able to call her officially my brainchild, so I named her Lake One, which stood for Lethal, Armourture, Kenetical, Extremeasis, One, being the first super soldier, perfect in every way. The perfect killing machine." Marks explained.

"So when you made her your original intent was to make yourself your own family. This doesn't make any sense." Morshower said.

"Lake is the only child I was able to make that was perfect in every way possible, in 1999 she fled, she ran away from home so to speak. So now here is me trying to find her, to take her back home, its been twenty years, and at times I have been able to find her and get close enough to her, but every time she manages to run. Even killed some of the soldiers I sent after her. Also created like she was with similar or better training ingrained to their DNA string." Marks replied

"You tried to kill her ?" Ii was Galloway who spoke up.

Marks shook his head, "No, Lake is my daughter, and a father cannot kill his own children, it was the way I was raised, a man cannot hit a woman. A father cannot kill his own child." He said. He stood up, "The only files on Lake you have on your desk, I know of some files on the Icegate that may interest your Autobot fellows." He said to Morshower.

He said nothing of having Morshower fired, Morshower spoke up, "Sir. Before you go,.. There is something I need to know."

Marks halted at the door, "Yes ?" He answered looking at Morshower. "What is it General ?"

"Why tell us this now ?" Morshower asked.

Marks smiled, "Because sooner or later, it was bound to come to light, the fact that the whole Pentagon now knows of Project Soldier, an old project of twenty years ago, now classed a complete success at the time, which hasn't changed, was to come to light anyhow to President Hayes. Just, not now."

"And Sec Def Keller ?" Galloway spoke up from where he sat.

"He knew of it before we got started when we needed the funding, but only smatterings of information. Project Iceman was a big letdown though, a massive metal beast of some sort." Marks then took his leave, leaving Morshower and Galloway in the office. On the screen the battle raged between two Autobots and a Decepticon.

"So" Morshower said taking a seat at his desk, "That went well." Galloway snickered. It had, and strangely Marks liked the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs.

* * *

><p>At NORAD the scene outside the base was total chaos as a massive scorpion fought against two robots similar in size. The scorpion, Hive, fired his pincers, plasma fire exploded against human transports, sending two trucks flying in different directions. A minute later and the scorpion swung his massive tail around and fired again, The silver Autobot, Swallowtail, backed off swiftly, as if thrown off, Ironhide began beating on Hive.<p>

Hive was a massive Decepticon. Compared to other 'Cons, Hive was one of the few that were similar in size to Megatron. But against these two Autobots, Hive had good even ground, He wanted something, he stabbed at the pavement with his tail and legs, grinding up ground and otherwise.

Gravel grass, broken cement, and fire, that was what was within the area of a fifty meter space around the three fighting, the massive Decepticon, and two smaller Autobots. Both of which were well skilled. The men just stared, open mouthed.

It wasn't until the massive air horn of a truck did any of the soldiers have the idea to try and run for cover when the massive scorpion threw off the silver Autobot and turned to flee. The black truck rolled off its back and transformed into its truck mode to give chase after the massive 'Con but halted for some reason, The silver robot also transformed into its typical Mustang mode. Help had arrived. Finally.

Optimus rumbled into view as the scorpion turned and transformed into its massive 8x8 mode and rumbled off, clearly angered. About something, however the massive semi truck pulled up next to the black pickup truck. Only a scant meter from the hood of the mustang, that appeared to sag on its struts. "I came as quickly as I was able." came a calm voice over the two smaller Autobots' comms. "Frenzy informed me there was trouble." He said. "He also informed me that there is a operational Icegate on this world. Morshower also wants to see Lake as well," That did it, The mustang now looked to the nearby soldiers as if it was sitting on the cement without aid of its struts. "I want you two to go, pick up the Triplets, Brains and Wheelie, and head back to base." Optimus said, "I will pick up Lennox, Lake, Epps and Frenzy. Hopefully this mess can get sorted out without loss of life."

That did it, the fact that Optimus wasn't angered at the two 'Bots, or with Swallowtail for setting off a Sesimic grenade to provide a distraction, it was something else that bothered him, so instead of being mad, he merely told them to do a simple task and head back to base. With Optimus there, things could get off alright, better then most things. The Mustang seemed happier and was as high as her struts and shock absorbers could extend because of those words. He was not angered, just, concerned.


	6. Respecting your Elders

_Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 6; Respecting your Elders_

Swallowtail was overjoyed, for one thing, Optimus was more concerned then angered, and for another thing he gave her a very simple order, pick up the guys from the hotel and head back to NEST base back in DC as quickly as possible. Good plan, very good plan. So as the Mustang and black truck took off up the road, leaving Optimus at the now knocked aside trucks, the driver of the truck, who wore dark pants with a offwhite shirt, and a red and blue jacket of sorts, light brown hair, clear blue eyes, finished off the Pretender Unit.

Optimus stepped from his truck frame and moved to where some soldiers were working to see if they had a full headcount, Optimus called out to one of the men who were giving orders, "Where can I speak to the commander of this base ?" he asked in a deep renosating voice. Of one that had an air of athority. After all, Optimus was a Prime.

The airman on duty, who was trying to get a headcount of his fellow soldiers, a man named Major Graywall, turned towards Optimus, He looked at the man thinking him a typical trucker. Though he recognised him instantly as a friend who helped at Egypt, who took down the Fallen, Reaching out a hand to shake, Graywall smiled, "Good to see you again, sir, General O'Niell is busy, we haven't been able to contact him, Major Lennox and sgt Epps also arrived about a hour ago."

Optimus looked thoughtful, "General O'Neill ?" he repeated, wondering who he was, Optimus barely knew this man, but he recognised him as well, shaking Graywalls' hand the 'truck driver' smiled thinly. "I am here to pick up a few packages, you named three of the five so far. Galloway and Morshower want a coincil in Washington." He said. He knew that much, though it was really him that wanted a council with everyone at NEST operations room as soon as humanly possible.

He wanted to know more about the Icegate, and if it was possible to go to Cybertron once more. And this man, Jack O'Neill was the one to talk to. Because the government kept information from the Autobots, again. Which was a mistake. Though Optimus understood the reason of why the Stargate was a secret, if people thought Aliens were attacking them like crazy from a million light years away and that there was technology out there that could bring the dead to life again and transport people from a starship to a planet. Yes, Jack was the one to talk to.

And all Optimus had to do was find him and talk to him. Once Graywall called another airman to lead 'Tim' to Jacks office a mile below ground, This base was not like Diego Carcia. Not that it truly mattered to the Truck. But then. Sometimes things did matter. Like the Icegate, Frenzy reported directly to him that it had been found and used on this planet, a lot. And now Lake had gone through it on her own.

Tim and the airman, an Airman Michaels, Stepped into the elevator that would take them t othe third subleevel, then transfer to the next elevator to take them to the subleve where Jacks offifice was located directly.

Tim said nothing, nor did Airman Michaels, It was not until sublevel 23 passed did Tim finally speak up, "How low is this office ?"

"Sublevel 28 sir." Michaels replied. "General O'Niell has his office just off the elevator. System."

"Before this base became a research center I was told it was also a nuclear weapon silo of some sort." Tim said, as if stating a fact. Chyenne Mountain complex, Norad testing Station. That was what Galloway told him about. As far as Galloway was able to understand at least.

"Originally Norad was a defense testing area, the missle silo was rebuilt after WWII" Michaels replied giving the information he himself was told when he was stationed there when he had asked about the research station, "I was told it has been used for virus research and other medical needs." He concluded. Galloway had said the same thing. Tim nodded, fair enough.

The elevator halted at the level it was to end at, Tim stepped off with Michaels, the two of them then went in file, Michaels leading the way to the office of Jack, Only Walter was there. "Michaels," Walter said, who got a nod in reply, The white haired man turned towards Optimus, "Who's this ?"

"I am Tim, Of Prime Trucking, I was requested by Secretary Galloway to pick up five people from NORAD Base, Lt Colonel William Lennox, Tech Seargent Raymond Epps, Colonel Lake One, General Jack O'Niell, and A Mr Fren Zyi." Optimus said handing a mostly offical letter to Walter. There was something afoot in Washington that Jack was needed for.

Walter took the paper, but he was easy to intimidate, however the signature was real, both of them were, Vice President Marks, and Secretary Galloway. Both of them signed the thing requesting and charging transportation to Tim of Prime Trucking to drive General O'Niell, Lennox, Epps, Lake and Fren Zyi to the airfield, then to the Pentagon, not the White House. Which was strange. It must have been important for the White House to send a civilan of all people to pick up Jack and the other four.

"Well," Walter said at last once he read the offical letter, Tim had signed the non disclosure agreement, which was good, "This way" Walter said turning to lead the way.

Tim followed after thanking Airman Michaels. "What can you tell me about this base Sargent harriman." Optimus asked in his guise of Tim, the red and blue jacket he wore, neatly trimmed goatee, raven black hair highlighted briefly with pale blue as if light were refelcted in it.

"That all depends on the level of clearance you have, and since you have written permission directly from the white house itself from the Vice President that means you can learn a lot of this base." Walter said as the pair walked into the briefing room, "Please take a seat" Walter indicated to the table, pick a seat, any seat, was basically the command.

Optimus did so, Walter continued speaking, "I'll inform the General you're here. But there is one thing I want to know, how did you know my rank ?"

"Can you keep a secret?" Optimus asked

Walter nodded "Sure" and leaned closer as if ready to hear it.

"So can I." Optimus said without any humor whatsoever. Walter grunted in reply and left to inform Jack.

* * *

><p>Swallowtail was subdued to the point of deathly quiet as the Mustang and truck pulled into the parking lot of the abandoned hotel, a minute passed and the three stooges clambered into Ironhides cab minus Zippy, who merely climbed into his bed portion in his alt mode and anchored himself down and snoozed. General and Crank however were bickering among themselves. Wheelie and Brains climbed into Swallowtail's passenger seat.<p>

Ironhide was concerned for his friend, they were to go to the airfield for an air transport to Washington DC. But who in their right mind would take a group of Autobots in their cargo hold ? But that was not important, Ironhide knew for a fact that he had never heard such a wail that Swallowtail let loose when Lake disappeared. Not even Decepticons wailed like that!

So that left the Pickup Truck concerned for the Mustang, concern for what would happen next, always what happened next was concerned for Swallowtail when it came to Lake and keeping her friend safe as possible. And with Lake missing, that made things worse, So that pretty much put Ironhide on watch to make sure Swallowtail herself didn't do something stupid.

As the two cars were headed to the airfield, Swallowtail was strangely quiet, it was not until they got to the airfield did a familiar voice come over their comms. {"I heard you guys n eeded a ride to DC..."} It was Lift.

Swallowtail perked right up {"Lift ?"}

{"Who else would offer you a ride, Sweets."} Lift always called her Sweets or Sweetie. It didn't matter to her anymore, it never really mattered to the Mustang what he called her, he meant it as a friend.

{"There is but one Autobot that calls me by that nickname."} Swallowtail mused over the comm.

{"Yes indeed, Optimus called me and said to have Ratchet head to NORAD for vital personel evac, So I did so, Optimus then informed me that you guys were on your way. We're to wait for him, then go as a group to DC. Where is Optimus anyhow ?"}

{"At NORAD"} Came the somewhat sullen reply from the Mustang

{"We'll tell you when we arrive."} Ironhide concluded.

{"Alright, two clicks from me at current speed should be about ten minutes."} Lift replied, then the comms died. None of the group of Autobots spoke since, Swallowtail was unnaturally brooding for some reason. And it made Ironhide worried.

A few minutes before the two cars arrived at the airfield, Ironhide spoke up, {"Relax, I'm Sure Optimus and Ratche can find Lake and make sure she is safe."} He said. Swallowtail said nothing. Ironhide continued, {"Swallowtail, please, relax, I know it is hard, but you have to trust Optimus, Whatever Lake is in the middle of I am sure she'll pull through it."}

{"But she said nothing of working with those that use the Icegate, Other then she fought with one of them and was left for dead in Death Valley six years ago after the Mission City battle."} Swallowtail finally replied as their pulled onto the property marker for the Airfield.

Without another word, Swallowtail pulled forwards of Ironhide and drove up the open ramp into the cargo carrying area that Lift had open for them to arrive. Once anhored in place the hood of the Mustang split apart and ejected the Unit she used to get around among humans. The asian apeparing woman that was Swallowtail's Pretender Unit stepped off the ramp to Lift's massive gaping belly area, The oil and scent of Ratchet was clearly in there.

There was also something else in there, four spacepillars. {"Lift"} Swallowtail said at last after staring at the things for several minutes.

{"Yeah Sweets ?"} Lift answered stepping from his cockpit into the cargo area to make sure the Ulticart form of Zippy was properly anchered and also Swallowtails Mustang frame. {"What is it ?"}

{"Where did the Spacepillars come from ?"} Swallowtail asked as she pointed at the things. Clearly curious

{"From a friend, he said they he'd activate them when the time was right. Never gave his name."} Lift replied, though personally he knew it was a Ancient Seeker named Thunderstrike. An old old friend to Lift, though nuetral and formerly a Decepticon at that.

{"What about the control pillar ?"} Swallowtail asked, at least she was focused on something else for the moment.

{"He kept it.'} Well that was both good and bad. But she asked nothing more. And that was good for Lift, because had he told her that a Decepticon Seeker had given the four Space Pillars to him in the first place, that might do worse.

* * *

><p>From where Optimus sat in his Pretender Unit mode in the briefing room, He listened to the clanks of the Icegate starting up, each chevern lighting up, able to see the thing pretty clearly. When it finally activated, he noticed first and formost, Lake all but fall through the thing, she was alive and well. As far as Optimus could see.<p>

{"Ratchet"} Optimus called over the comm, Lake did not look good, the fact that Frenzy pretty much broke a window fro mthe sounds of things and rushed to the womans side to hold her up as best he was able made it al lthe more apparent that she required help.

{"Present, Optimus, what do you need ?"} Ratchet replied calmly, he was out driving in Colorado Springs, just inside town. He knew he'd be needed at some point, {"I got a lock on your truck's location, I'm on my way. "} He needn't be told of why he was needed, the medical Autobot was able to help in many things. This one most parmount. The video feed from Optimus was proof that time was against him. Lake looked an absolute wreck. {"I will see you at the surface "} The medic said a prayer of thanks to Primus for sending him there with Lift in the first place.

{"Copy, see you shortly"} Optimus replied as he heard voices downstairs. Jack was clearly one of them...

"What do you mean there's a giuy to see me ? Give me that..." Jack took the letter from Walter who handed it out to him to take and read. It was an excutive order alright. "Who the hell is Galloway ?" jack asked.

"That would be one of our security advisors." Lennox said simply He didn't really like the guy much, as he had thrown him out a plane, well, it was Galloway's own fault to begin with as he had pulled his o wn cord for his chute at the time.

"Never heard of him" Jack said. He handed the letter back to Walter, "Tell our guest I'll be right up." He said, Max moved to get Mark before the man attacked the woman a second time as the white robot fired Lake's pistol at the once shatter proof window, which shattered from the .357 round, and then scampered over the broken glass to the woman as Lake stepped into view through the 'Gate.

A minute passed when nothing was said as Lake stared towards Mark, the man stared back with somwthing of respect for the woman as he then turned on his heel and left, Max on the other side of the massive door. Looking slightly unnerved

Lake all but let Frenzy carry her, Epps, ignoring Carter's death glares, scampered through the shattered window after Frenzy, and helped the 'Bot with helping Lake. The woman was indeed hurting as the man spotted a trail of blood from her mouth and the way she favored her right side. "You OK ?" Epps asked her, she faked a nod, but he could tell she was indeed hurting. He heard a note from Ratchet on his radio, "Help is on the way, we gotta get you to swallowtail, if Frenzy this crazy about getting you back, Swallowtail must be even worse." Epps said

"No, really." Lake asked in her broken english, Epps just nodded, not answering as he helped Lake to the control room, using the door this time, with him was Frenzy, who had slid Lakes sidearm to its proper place at Lake's left hip. Lake smiled thinly at the little 'bots efforts to be of help. Acting as a guard dog Frenzy turned his mostly meancing gaze towards the retreating back of Mark who was leaving the gateroom. Frenzy spotted Max on the other side of the doorway and chattered something in seeming gibberish.

Though it was Lake's pain filled voice that halted the 'Bot from his prefered method of the moment. Only she was talking to Epps "Keep Frenzy between me and the man that was fighting me. Also, keep the man ten paces from me at all times. He is too much like one of the other soldiers I had to battle recently."

"You mean one of those Decepticons, like that Alice drone ?" Epps asked as he helped Lake through the side door to a hallway then up a short flight of stairs into the control room. The look he gave to Lennox said everything as the other man hooked his weapon to his side and went to support Lake's other arm. The two men then all but carried her up the stairs behind jack who was fuming. Frenzy was one step behind Lake, keeping one of his four eyes on everything, where he was going, keeping one eye on Lake herself, another on the path behind him and the last one on Carter.

Max was waiting in the hall. These humans had weapons that could take down his shields, it was the pure kenetic force of the weapon the man had used that knocked him to the floor, though the weapon itself managed to totally overload the shield in one single hit. These people were strong if they had weapons that could knock out his shield system

Mark stepped into the hall and saw the look on his commanders face, however Max was not mad, he was far more curious than anything at the moment, So Mark listened as Max spoke.

"These Terrans have weapons that are strong. One managed to kill my shield and knock me to the ground." He said, Mark raised an eyebrow but said nothing as Max continued, "The small robot is protective of the woman, and so are the two men that have come, one of them spoke to her, called her Lake, whatever that means."

"The robot is sentient, and is not meant to live. You know that." Mark retorted, the two turned a corner and wandered down the hall towards the guest VIP rooms, "Had I wanted to kill the woman I would have gladly done so, But something told me to only injure. I do not know of what." Mark replied thoughtfully.

"If the robot itself is sentient, then life itself is sacred, it lives on its own, similar ot a human, And yet you want to kill it. Had you done so things would have been far worse." Max replied

"Even so, things are bad as it is. That woman fights dirty, fights like an Alesian, that makes me nervous and also very curious to how she fights so well. Even when I had managed to injure her enough to slow her down. And yet she never did slow down. She threw me! Nort even my own men can do that, Unless it is Camndress Keke." Commandress keke was a DREC of very high ranking Alesian born woman.

Max snickered at the mere thought of Commandress Keke throwing Mark across a room, she could easily do just that if she wanted to do so. He sombered up near instantly. "At the moment there are other pressing needs to face. One of those is this, how do you feel now. After that fight, she struck you, threw you. Done many things, and yet you both still stand after the beating both of you equally took on both sides" He had seen the strike Lake had landed on Mark before fleeing through the stargate. Right between the legs, even with as little armor the man had worn at the time, that still hurt.

"Yes, she has struck hard enough to break our battle and flee." Mark said with a hint of disgust in his voice. The woman fought too much like an Alesian for his comfort. Who trained her. "She is unnaturally strong for one so frail looking." Mark said in thought.

"Looks are deciving Commander. You know that" Max said, Not to mention that this slows you on your path to Legate status. Max thought. "Come, let us see how the woman in red is faring, doubtless you wonder how she can still be on her feet after this long." It took some doing, as Mark did not want to face that woman again, however at Max's prodding he did go with him. Providing the woman was in good hands, he was respectful to say in the least and kept his distance from her, the look she gave him made him nervous.

Not many people made the Alesian nervous, but Lake had managed to some how do it, other then Amann himself Mark rarely got nervous from anyone trying to intimidate him in any way, and here, a woman slightly smaller and far more frail then himself, easily made him nervous/ Max and Mark stepped into the controlroom and the latter looked upwards at the chattering from the white and silver robot with brilliant white 'eyes' The robot carried two starshapoed weapons in its hands, one of them aimed towards someone, most likely Carter. Maybe.

But it didn't matter, Carter was once again busy trying ot get the radios to work as the two Alesians went upstairs as Lake was helped towards the table, they heard Jack clearly though. "Who's this ?" He asked pointed at Optimus, known at the time as Tim, of Optimal Trucking Company. Their driver as assigned by the President and Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Optimus spoke up "My name is Tim, of Optimal Trucking company, my company was contacted by Secretary of State, Galloway to act as driver to the airport." He said, "Don't worry, I signed the agreements already." Yeah sure, like there was an agreement to sign for this kind of thing. Optimus was an alien. But nobody, ave for Morshower and some others, and all of NEST itself knew that.

"Yeah, what for ? What exactly does Sec State want with NORAD ?" Jack asked

"I can tell you that" Optimus asked, his face never breaking into a smile as everyone looked at him, Jack as if expecting an answer, "Secretary Galloway wants ot know just how the Air Force managed to get their hands on alien technology without telling him or the president." Jack stared at Tim slackjawed.

"How did you know that ?" Jack asked once his mouth started moving right.

"Can you keep a secret ?" Tim asked, his fave straight as heck, which made Jack nervous.

"Sure I can keep a secret, makes me wonder how Sec State managed to get win of our operation here." Jack said, already he was starting ot hate this guy.

"So can I, I have a medical team on the way to help with one of the five who are to accompany me to the airfield. You're one of those five. Colonel." Optimus said standing up.

"Really ? Who are the other four, I'm assuming Lt Lake is one of them." Jack said

"That's Colonel Lake." Epps spoke up from where he supported Lake with Lennox. Lennox nodded at Epps words, Lake was a colonel alright, heck she only took orders directly from the Autobots, and nobody else. Unless Lennox said Optimus sent him to fetch her. Which he had, only to have the plan backfire.

"I stand corrected then, Sergeant" Jack retorted, he knew Epps rank by the look and actions the man had. He looked back to Optimus, who called himself Tim. As if waiting for him to explain who else was going.

"The two men supporting Lake, and also the one guarding her as well. Along with yourself, are coming to Washington to speak with the chairman of the joint chiefs and also Secretary Galloway. There are things that need explaining from both sides Mr O'Niell." Now how did he know his last name ? "I suggest that you get some of your things you may need and meet us upstairs." With that he turned towards Lake and asked her in Mandarin, "Are you alright ?"

Lake in reply merely bent her head downwards and spat a mouthful of blood to the floor. Yes, she was in pain. "No" She replied in the same langauge, "That one managed to do some damage. Have you informed Swallowtail of my injury yet ? Or do you still plan to surprise her of my return ?"

Optimus looked thoughtful before replying "Swallowtail will be informed when we reach the surface. You are injured, Ratchet can transport you in safety and also give you some medical care before we get to DC where you'll be healed fully." He raised a hand, "Don't say no, there will be a lot a of explaining when we get there before you're healed, I know you wont like it, but you need help, even if you don't want to see him again." Him, he meant her father. Her creator. Optimus had been fully informed by Galloway and Vice President Marks about Lake. And Marks expressed intrested in healing Lake, Maybe even talk to her.

Lake spat again, less blood that time, Finally she nodded, very well, she'd see her father, but if he tried to reimplant her old system, she'd run and never look back, even if it killed her she'd never go back if he tried to reset her true system of a killer. Since she met Swallowtail and the other Cybertronians she had taken them as her family. Made things more fun. More safe for her to begin with.

It was settled Optimus motioned for the two men to take Lake to the elevator, Frenzy followed, keeping his weapons ready, at seeing Optimus he chattered something and gave a sort of salute towards the man in greeting, or respect, most likely the little robot knew the older appearing man. Which made things more fun for the guy when he took in the two Alesians.

Jack took Walter into his office, "Carter is going to wonder what's going on, you got the fort Walter, Don't let her out, Lake and her still have a bone to pick, because it explains why Lake never struck her or got into a fight with her yet, something's up. I don't want to loose anyone over an old spat that six years old." he said, He packed a small suitcase with a few needed things, coffee mug, some cream, and his crossword puzzle book.

Walter nodded, so he'd be acting in Jacks stead as head of the SGC until he got back, was that good or bad. What caught the blondhaired bespecticled man off guard though was what Jack then asked him "Is it justm e or does that guy named Tim look like someone I saw at Dragon*Con last year ?" So Jack and Jack Jr went to Dragon*Con the year before when they were visiting some of Jacks relatives. That meant mostly two things, Peter Cullen was there, and then some.

"What do you mean sir ?" Walter asked, clearly confused. He had his tablescreen with him and started typing into it. He had an internet connection then. "What was the man's name ?" He tried doing a image search using 'Tims' image, and only got nothing, "He does look familiar, like a famous actor or something."

"Try Peter Cullen, can't help but think of him." Jack said thoughtfully as Tim gazed rather mexican standoff style towards the two Alesians before turning to leave. This was going to be a fun trip.

Walter nodded and typed in the image search, and was almost instantly repaid with several differnet images of Peter Cullen at Dragon*Con and Comic Cons the year before. Though searching a bit more brought up the image of a red flames on blue peterbuilt Semi truck minus a trialer parked outside. "Got a match sir, it's possible our fellow here knows or has met Peter Cullen himself, the truck. Look at the truck, Peter Cullen on this video walked by it. Then a minute or so later, he got out of it. Didn't he just walk past it ?"

"It's a mystery, reminds me of that robot at new York, it was a little RC truck from Traxxas. Called himself a Cybertronian, Max and Mark were unable to find a match to it." He said, "For now though keep the fort and I'll be back in a jiffy." Jack said going out into the hallway. He poked his head back in "Oh and Walter, try nd keep our guests from killing each other again will you." Jack snickered and then left, the door closing slowly behind him. This day was going to be a fun one.

Jack went to the elevator only to find Tim standing by the closed door, Lennox and Epps had gone already with Lake and Frenzy was it ? It didn't matter, at least Jack could probably get a one on one chat with the guy. He hoped. The pair stood at the elevator waiting for it to open, the long haul to the top and back was a few minutes, so that gave them some time to just talk between themselves. Jack broke the ice first. "Nice jacket. Where'd you get it ?"

"Custom made" Optimus replied. "If you tried to get one for yourself you'd be in for a long wait." He said. He had a deep basseto tone ot his voice, an older man, a leader. Jack looked thoughtful. And was about ot reply as the door opened to the elevator and they both entered, Jack pressed the button for the surface.

"So, no new jacket, so much for that bundle of money on a bet" he mumbled, though there was no bet. Jack then turned towards Optimus, "I haven't pegged your game yet and something is driving me crazy. Are you Peter Cullen ?" He asked. He was hoping he was wrong

Tim just looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Who ?" He asked, "Is Peter Cullen ?" Tim apparently had no idea of the man. Yet he looked exactly like him. Optimus did a intranet search, a lookup on this Cullen no doubt. Soon finding many things about the guy, a family man and actor. "Something bothers you, what is it ?"

"Something merely tells me that you aren;t who you really say you are." He said, Jack had no idea of what happened up top, the radios were down. And his apparently still was being that close to Optimus. So it was quite the shock when he got up top to the parking lot and saw the destruction, and the cleanup after it. What had gouged a hole in the parking lot ?

What surprised him more was the arrival of am edical van, a yellow and white colored hummer drove into view, lights and siren blaring and blasting as it pulled up to where Lennox and Epps helped Lake, Frenzy by that time had hiddenhimself into Epps backpack as a radio of some sort.

What surprised jack even more was the man that got out of the medical hummer, a older man, an arabian look to him of sorts, nothing like any he had seen, a ehite moustache on his face, and also a red and yellow symbol of some sort on his shirt, the symbol, instead of a cross was something Jack had never seen before.

The Autobot insigna.

Things just got tricky. Very very tricky.

Very.. dangerously, tricky.

Jack then noticed the really nice Peterbuilt parked nearby to the medical hummer, and the other three, briefly wondering where their little robot friend went off to. It made him slightly nervous, though he found himself thinking clearly, That must be a Prime Trucking truck. I hope. Jack's gaze was then caught and held by the arabian appearing medic as he moved to Lake, a minute passed and Lake was taken inside, with her went Epps and also Frenzy.

Lennox then closed both doors to the medical hummer and slapped on it twice. Lake was ready.

"Optimus" Came a radio call over 'Tim's' private internal comm system, "I have Lake, I'll meet you at Lift, Sergeant Epps is also with me, Lake is in badshape, two broken ribs, a cut lung, and some other damaged areas, and lots of bruises. I have her hooked ot some medicines. She should be fine until we get to Lift, Have you informed Swallowtail, or shall I ?"

Optimus replied simply, "Let Lake do it. Have Epps make contact with her now. I will meet you at Lift's location. Be warned however, there are decepticons in the area, one of them Hive, attacked both Swallowtail and Ironhide together."

"Understood, good luck. And becareful, I'm not the only one with two biologicals in transport." That made Optimus mentally smile. Ratchet was concerned for the humans, wantinig ot keep them safe, and in Lakes case, in one healthy piece.

The hummer pulled away, its siren blasting.

The day just got more fun, Jack knew he was in for a wild ride.


	7. Old Friends are the Ties that Bind

_Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 7; Old Friends are the Ties that Bind_

Nobody expected the woman in red to have a twin sister, nor did they expect that twin to have her own twin sister, a pair of red optics watched the mustang and the black truck and an airline pilot talk between themselves. The policewoman kept watch over an intranet uplink. She noticed the mustang had a few small dents in the back bumper. Hive had gotten to her apparently.

Downshift continued to watch over the intralink feed everything going on by the plane. Not expecting her sister to look her way, directly at her. But saw nothing. It was a moment later when a intranet notice flashed on her vision. {"Incoming feed, accept ?"} Automatically Downshift accepted the feed, it was her sister, her own face, well, almost her own face, stared right back at her. {"hello sister..."} Said Swallowtail, the Pretender Unit of the Mustang had gone back inside the jumbo cargojet.

{"Hello Birdie."} Downshift replied, almost too cheery. {"I see you met up with Hive, Molotov wasn't there was he ? If he was I'll kill him!"} Downshift hated it when her plans went wrong.

The look on her sisters face said it all, clear confusion {"How did you know I met up with that monster ?"} She asked. Downshift just snickered. Finally Swallowtail asked, {"What do you want Downy ?"}

{"To talk"} Came the rather short and simple reply. Downshift left her perch and moved to her car and got in. She kept her intralink feed to her sister open.

Swallowtail wasn't buying it, {"I'm serious little sister, what do you want that I am able to give that wont involve my death or the death of my human ?"} Swallowtail never liked the games her Decepticon sibling played with her.

{"Nothing like that, I just want to talk, nothing more, nothing less, just you and me, alone, the two of us, like old times."} Downshift replied, the slightest hint of worry in her voice. That meant trouble. And if she wanted to talk to her...

("Alright, give me a day, get to DC, we can meet up there, transcan a civilian car and driver, I can meet you anywhere, a cop meeting a normal woman will turn heads and unwanted attention.

{"Why not now ? Why can't you just grab your frame and meet me on the other side of the terminal building ? It wont take five minutes."} Downshift replied

{"Because, I am busy at the moment, Optimus told me to stay here, meet him at the airport, Not to leave once I get here."} That startled the young Decepticon, since when did Swallowtail follow orders from anybody ? But downshift didn't question it one bit. And that made Swallowtail nervous.

{"Fine, I will uplink a feed to you in DC, See you then dear sister."} Downshift closed the feed and drove off, leaving the area of the airport. Hive was an idiot, attacking at that time because of Swallowtails distraction. Something was up among the other 'Cons, Headgame was active again, and his loonies were being let loose every day or so. And that made her job harder. She liked to kill brutally and efficiently, and silently if it were possible.

But no, things got flipped inside out and that left Downshift to deal with the mess left behind. Like this one. Only, she was nervous, slightly. Starscream was mostly annoying, and also nervous, since seeing the Autobots in New York two days before, Downshift was able to trace them to Colorado Springs, It was easy to track a Cybertronian overwritten Mustang anywhere on the planet.

When her sister had closed the feed uplink Swallowtail went quiet and thoughtful for once. Curious of why her sister wanted to talk to her, not try and kill her, alone, the two of them, and asking why if there was another that was with Hive when it was really just Hive on his own that tried to take her down on his own. That monster didn't get far though thanks to Ironhide.

So that left her thinking, and wondering just what was going on on this planet when a radio feed came in, from Lake. Lake didn't sound too good either. As if hurt. "Swallowtail, its me, Ratchet has me and Epps in his medical area of his ambulance frame. We're coming to you, so stay put." She sounded better with each word she spoke.

"Alright, I'll be waiting for you outside" Swallowtail replied. The radio feed died, Lake was alive, Ratchet carried her, that was good news indeed. So instead she contacted Optimus, curious to what was taking the group so long in picking up Lake and where Lake had gone. The two were in conference for a short time before Swallowtail l stepped from Lift's massive gullet and onto the tarmac of the airport. Lift was not just a 787 FedEx cargo jet, he was also an Autobot, a veteran of many battles in the War. The pilot stood by some fueling tanks and was finishing loading of fuel into his wing tanks, the fuel was actually refined Energon, curtsey of a certain Junkion. Prybar had been by apparently, unless it was Warranty.

Swallowtail was thoughtful in the sense that why Optimus had taken that long to let Lake contact her, she was barely able to contact their fearless leader. She figured it was for her own sanity that she wait for Lake to contact her, and since Lake, and Ratchet and Epps and also Frenzy, were on their way to the airfield at that moment made things better for the Mustang, she'd see her favorite human soon. She up-linked to a wiremap of the city, on it was a green dot, Ratchet was labeled, with him were three other signals, Frenzy, Epps and Lake. Another dot, also green was labeled as Optimus, with him were two men, Lennox and another man named Jack.

Six of the seven she recognised, but the last guy she did not, so she was curious and did a intranet search. Within a few seconds she had what she required, her software package had disabled a lock of some kind and accessed a slew of information, Brains appeared and scampered in his small form over to Ironhide and climbed into the cab as Wheelie arrived from within Lifts massive belly. The RC truck was in his protoform mode, wheeling around mostly drunkenly as he wove between Lifts massive tires of the plane. He had a cup of refined Energon in one of his tiny hands.

Swallowtail noticed that, "You gave him Energon ?" She asked to Lift

"Yeah, what about it ?" Lift asked in reply "Something wrong with giving him a eight ounce glass of Energon ?"

"Have you seen him high on an Energon Goodie ?" Swallowtail asked. Lift nodded, a smirk on his face, what he gave Wheelie was not an Energon Goodie, but just refined Energon. "That's not an EG right, just plain refined Energon ?" Lift nodded, that was good.

However what made her slightly nervous was that Wheelie was singing in Cybertronian, "I get to die, another day, I get to drink, more Energon, another day..." He was sadly very off key and not likely to make a landing on Cybertronian Idol, as spoken by the true genius among them from over by Ironhide "Can someone get him on the proper key ? He's not just murdering that song, he's butchering it!" Brains apparently didn't like Wheelies lack of talent.

"Oh leave him alone I like his singing" Ironhide joked, personally he'd care less if Wheelie got shot or run over or left behind, but then Wheelie was the reason Lake was in this mess in the first place. So that meant that Wheelie was also very important to the mission and even more-so that there were Aliens within NORAD at that very moment, Aliens that wanted to kill Wheelie, even held the RC truck by his thin as a reed neck as well until Starscream attacked. And Lake was kidnapped, that made things slightly worse off for everybody.

{"hey Sweets, they're coming, Ratchet first, then Optimus a few minutes behind."} Lift said over the comms, the man rarely spoke, most people thought him a mute. And yet he spoke over the radio just fine, almost robotic like.

Swallowtail turned then towards the road, seeing on her wireframe map Lake, Ratchet, and Epps along with Frenzy all inside him, they were all there. Finally! Swallowtail was all but jumping for joy as Ratchet pulled into view at the airport border. Lake was alive, that is what counted.

Jack wasn't expecting that Tim drove a massive Peterbuilt truck, nor did he expect to fit into the cab of the thing with Lennox and Tim himself, though he did not know that Tim was really the truck, Tim got in first, a second or so later the doors unlocked, both driver side and passenger side, allowing Lennox into the driver seat, where did Tim go anyhow ? And Jack into the passenger seat.

* * *

><p>Jack spoke first once the truck rumbled to life as they both sat down and the doors sealed, "Now what ?"<p>

"Sit back and relax, seat belts gentlemen' Came Tim's voice over the speakers in the truck. Optimus then shifted into drive and pulled from the parking spaces he had taken up. Easily looping around the hole generated by Swallowtails Sesimic party ball.

Jack looked at Lennox, "Did the truck just talk ?" He failed to notice at the time that Lennox was just relaxing in the driver seat of the massive Peterbuilt truck Not that it was too important, well it was if there were police around, but since they were on the grounds of a military installation that he oversaw Jack let it slide for the moment. He was more concerned with other things, and sense he had Lennox pretty much cornered in the truck with him, not knowing that it was really him who was cornered in the truck at that moment... "OK, what just happened back there ?" He asked, meaning more then likely the whole mess with Lake.

"Well, I can tell you only so much," Lennox replied, As far as Lennox knew, NEST was a higher ranking structure overseen directly by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs. That meant not only was he able to say "Can't tell you that" but Optimus pretty much meant that Lennox had more leeway then Jack himself did. Even though Lennox never left earth before in his life, he did deal and work with Alien Life on a daily basis.

"Well, start telling what you can tell, I'm listening." Jack said, now slightly annoyed.

Lennox started speaking, "You remember Mission City about eight or so years ago. The Autobots, that's what we call them, came to Earth looking for their artefact called the All Spark. They wanted to find it before Megatron got hold of it."

"Mega-who ?" Jack asked

Lennox rolled his eyes, this was just wonderful. "I'll let Tim explain, Tim.."

Optimus spoke through the speakers, a small hologram appearing, "Seven years ago we came to earth after the All Spark, it landed here, the All Spark was our source of life on our planet, for thousands of years we were a peaceful empire, but some of us wanted to control the all spark and use it for war, the rest of us wanted peace. Megatron was one of those that wanted to use the all spark and give life to everything machine in the galaxy and use those machines to win the war. So we sent the Alspark into space. It landed on Earth, Megatron followed it and also landed on Earth."

"That was the whole Mission City thing ? We went there to get some information to what was going on there in the first place" Jack said, he recounted what Carter had said about getting a data slate and Lake getting left behind due to injuries she had taken. But when they went back to get her Lake was gone.

"Yes, that was Mission City, known commonly as Las Vegas." Lennox replied. "We fought the Decepticons, Lake most likely told you about some of them, and won, Megatron was killed, and dropped in the Lantian Abyss, seven miles under water to rust under pressure and cold. Unfortunately the Fallen, two years later resurrected Megatron with one of the last shards of the All spark, as a result we had another battle, this one in Egypt. There were also many more Decepticons landing on Earth as well."

"yes that was all over the news, strange asteroid shower that hit France, Egypt and some areas of the eastern coast." Jack agreed, "From what I remember France wanted payment for the damage through American firms, turns out it was not Americas fault as a college library was reported bombed somehow."

Lennox nodded, but it was Optimus who spoke, "That is correct, A Decepticon infiltrator known as Alice, a Decepticon Drone, had tried to get close to Samuel James Whitwicky, a good young man of strong will." Optimus said showing briefly an image of Sam Whitwicky on the hologram system. "Sam was able to use the Matrix of Leadership to resurrect myself, I was the only one who could destroy the Fallen, at the death of a comrade and offering of his parts, I was able to do so, barely. All because Sam believed in me and returned for me."

"So now what ? What about their weird attack of Chicago two years ago, was that part of it too ?" Jack asked,

Lennox nodded, "The Decepticons tried to enslave the human race to rebuild their home world Cybertron, that weird honeycomb thing in the sky. It didn't work as 'Bee had destroyed the control pillar for the space bridge system. As a result the planet was sucked into the void."

"I fear that we can never go back, however, the moons and colonies are still there, they were not part of direct orbit of Cybertron itself. We uncovered a device buried in the ice, we called it an Icegate because beyond it was a few buildings within a wall. None of them Cybertronian in origin, all of it buried in the thick ice. We were unable to find where it led, or if it led anywhere, the fact that you have a device here on Earth that is of similar material and have used it makes me wonder several things." Optimus said.

"What if we use it ? What would you want it for, how could you guys even find it ?" Jack asked.

"You had taken Lake and Frenzy with you guys from New York in some sort of airship that we were unable to see or find. Thanks to Frenzy we were able to pinpoint where he and Lake were, and Wheelie was able to unlock lakes cell in your isolation area too" Lennox said as Optimus turned onto the road that lead into the airfield. "So its basically your fault that we found this Icegate thing."

"My fault, well I fail to see how its my fault, I for one did not know that it was Lake that I knocked out and dragged to the jumper." Jack said. It was the truth, though the guttural rumble of the diesel engine made it clear, Optimus was going to accept that excuse for now. The plane was in sight, and Optimus slowed.

When Optimus halted allowing both men to get out Jack stared as from the plane a woman exactly like Lake exited the plane, however this woman had clear blue eyes, strangely oriental clothing on in shades of cream and tan. The woman had strange markings on her face, around her right eye and what appeared to be onto the right side of her neck as well. Jack just stared. He finally asked Lennox as Swallowtail went to Ratchet as the doors opened and Epps climbed out, Frenzy pretty much rolled out, "Is that ?"

"Her mustang ?" Lennox finished for him, Jack just nodded, Lennox nodded in reply "Yep, that's Swallowtail, the worlds fastest and only space capable Mustang Shelby GT500 Queen of the Road" He said. He admired how Swallowtail was acting at this point, though he had yet to hear the wail that Swallowtail gave off.

Swallowtail took hold of Lake's other arm and all but picked the woman up like a child as Epps stepped out of Ratchet and onto the pavement of the runway, "That our lift ?" He asked, the FedEx pilot merely nodded. Yep, it was their ride out.

Swallowtail spoke to Epps, "I'll carry her," When Lake was about to protest Swallowtails look alone told her to keep her mouth shut. Swallowtail easily picked up Lake, with the woman in her arms, her legs draped over one arm, and her back supported by the Mustangs other arm, Swallowtail stepped away from Ratchet and started towards lift, holding Lake like one would a precious item. Which to Swallowtail, Lake was.

Swallowtail halted and stared at jack, something of venom in her eyes as she looked at Jack, the way she held Lake made it clear she didn't like the man very much. Lennox broke the ice then, "Swallowtail, meet Jack O'Neill, Lakes former employer before she met you. On the plane I'll explain more. Shall we ?" Swallowtail never took her robotic ice blue gaze off Jack as the man followed Lennox onto the plane, a black pickup truck pulled to the ramp, however the yellow medical hummer also pulled up the ramp as Jack and Lennox walked up it, Epps with them, Frenzy poking at Wheelie. Who was slapping back at him to keep the other slightly taller 'Bot away from his only dose of Energon for the next two weeks to a month.

Swallowtail then went up the ramp as Optimus turned around and backed into Lift's massive gullet. The Mustang frame sat anchored to the deck, Jack noticed the car and whistled seeing it. Though he wondered briefly why the strange writing on it, he stole a glance towards Swallowtail, the design around the woman's right eye was almost exactly what he noticed over and around the right front headlamp of the car. Without another look he turned and followed both the pilot and Lennox to the passenger section as Optimus backed up fully and anchored down, Ironhide pulled into the plane as Lift hit the ramp controls, two little figures scampered aboard as the ramp raised to seal, Ironhide parked firmly on it.

Lift took the controls, the Pretender Unit was really just a drone when Lift was in his full alt mode, the plane didn't even taxi as it lifted from the ground smoothly, VTOL ability was helpful in most cases. As the plane took to the air in the midday sunlight, two pairs of optics, one red, the other greyish white, watched. The police car left the airport area and headed eastwards, whereas the other car, a silver streamlined car smaller then a Mustang, but just as powerful and fast lifted off the ground and disappeared. Nobody saw the silver car, nor did anyone think on it until well later.

* * *

><p>Within the passenger compartment of the cargo plane Swallowtail laid Lake onto one of the bench seats, Lake hissed as a jolt of pain washed over her, and yet she was in one piece and still alive, As she laid there Swallowtail sat as well, Lakes head in her lap. The two spoke in Mandarin, "What happened ?" Swallowtail asked simply.<p>

Lake groaned slightly as she settled on her back, looking up at Swallowtails concerned face, "Had a fight with a Pretender unit, and forced a stalemate. So to speak. Why" Lake replied.

"Your life sign disappeared, you had me worried that you were gone for good." Swallowtail said using a rag that was given to her by Epps to brush some of the blood off Lake's face. "I thought you were gone."

Lake smiled barely, though Epps saw it. Swallowtail, a mustang car, a robot really, was concerned and very protective for Lake, a woman who always looked out for herself before meeting the Autobots, and now had someone to not just look after, but who she knew could always have her back.

The flight to DC was uneventful, even though Jack was used to such flights he had the strangest feeling that he was in over his head, far over his head, but he focused instead on the papers in front of him and tried to take his mind off Lake and the car,, well, woman with Lake across the way. Though Swallowtail was staring at Jack, never blinking. Lake had fallen into a painful sleep within minutes of liftoff.

Finally Jack spoke "Alright what is it ?" He asked towards Swallowtail, Lakes blue eyed tattooed twin.

"Why did you attack Lake ?" Swallowtail asked, well that was a tough question to try and answer, since Lake was actually attacked by Mark, an Alesian, Not him.

"She fired first." Jack said turning back to his paper in his hands. Reading through the Mission City attack and aftermath, and all the government BS that went with it. Wonderful job he had, keeping an alien device hidden, and using it damn near daily, it was these people that surprised him though, how could Lake, some one he hadn't seen in six years, be interacting and saving Earth with aliens that were drivable ? Normally he was right on top of things in terms of alien invasions.

"Had she a true reason to shoot, then you would not be alive to speak to me" Swallowtail said, her voice almost a direct match to Lakes own in terms of tone, "But since you now speak to me here, and she is also alive, what happened, who attacked my Driver ?"

Jack looked up from the mission report, the first Decepticon incursion thwarted a month or so after the Mission City, or rather, Las Vegas, event six and a half years before. Driver ? "Driver ?" He asked, was she kidding ?

Swallowtail didn't even nod or shake her head, she just stared at him. A slight purr was heard from Lake, Brains was right, Lake's genetical structure was more attune to a feline then a monkey, it explained why she was so... graceful.. His gaze was taken then by a blue and silver RC truck and what looked to be a very expensive computer on the bed portion of same.

What made him just stare was the strange chittering noises coming from both the truck and the laptop, and the fact that the white robot that was ever present near Lake was chasing after the RC truck as quickly as it could. Jabbering something in a strange language.

Jack finally spoke again after a moment of quiet and watching Frenzy, Brains and Wheelie scamper around the passenger area of the plane. "This Tim guy, who is he to you ? Why is he taking his truck with us ? " Jack asked, so many questions, so little time, either way Swallowtail answered those questions.

"Tim as you know him is in charge over the others, and myself at times when Lake wants to listen to his orders. Doubtless things like this lead to desperate measures, things she'd prefer to avoid at all costs." She said thoughtfully. Meaning Lakes current condition, at Jacks confused look she explained, "To you Lake is a soldier bred for combat, but to me she is more then that, she is more akin to a sister that I once had."

Jack remembered a police car that looked very new, "You mean that police car I saw pulling away from the airport ?" Swallowtail just looked at him as if annoyed he shut up and let her continue

"Lake has always been running, this she told me before, running from her... home you might call it." Swallowtail continued, "She'd been running for years, afraid of her past life. Then met me. We went on several adventures together before she really met me. She often wondered how I was able to avoid the police so easily in Atlanta, not to mention get into and out of places so well and smoothly. As well."

"So what are you ? A woman or a car ? Or both ?" Jack asked, pressing the question again of driver.

"I am both a woman as you see me and a car, which you saw in the cargo area next to the utility cart, Zippy." Swallowtail said, She smiled thinly at Jacks slack jawed agape mouth towards her, "The Mustang you saw in the cargo area, that's part of me. Hopefully you'll know more later when you talk to Galloway."

It was then that Time entered the passenger area from the cargo area, the man had with him a beefy fellow, a guy that looked to be the whole defensive line for the Detroit Lions all in himself with short dark blond hair and steel green eyes and black shades on his head. The two men were conversing with each other in a language that sounded similar to the three smaller robots scampering around underfoot.

The younger appearing man nodded and moved to the cockpit area where the pilot was after a minute of strong deliberation, the Arabian fellow, the medic, arrived then from within the cargo area to check on Lake no doubt.

"How's she doing ?" Ratchet asked to Swallowtail, Lake murred slightly as the Autobot scout moved to replace her lap with an actual pillow for the woman in red.

"Better then before now that she's asleep." Swallowtail replied.

"I don't mean Lake." Ratchet said, Jack even went stiff when he saw the look that Swallowtail was giving to the Arab, had Ratchet struck a metal shell too hard again or what ? Or did he stir something inside the Autobot ? Swallowtail and Ratchet had a stare off, What was he trying to tell her ? It didn't matter. After a few tense seconds the woman seemed to back down, as if scolded, Swallowtail turned away. "Are you OK Swallowtail ? Ironhide is worried about you, are you sure you're OK ?"

Swallowtail turned her gaze away from Ratchet, looking at Lake, Sometimes the Autobot scout wanted to be human, to be with Lake all the time and when she could. But no, she had to settle to being her car, but that was OK. She nodded, "When Lake disappeared from my radar I thought her lost, gone, I'm fine now though, She's here, asleep, safe." She smiled thinly, "I'm fine now, Nothing more to worry about. I hope. Why ? Is something the matter ?"

Ratchet looked thoughtful, "Optimus had contacted DC, Galloway said that once he speaks with Jack O'Neill over matters we can get access to this worlds Icegate and try to get a link to home, do you want to come if we are able to do just that ?" Ratchet asked her. That was an important question to think on, leave Lake ? They couldn't just take Lake with them could they ? Leave her on earth, alone ?

She sighed, Swallowtail hated picking one or the other and never getting the proper pick of any one or the other question, "I'll have to think on it." Was all she said before turning to go into the cargo area. Jack watched her disappear into the cargo compartment as Ratchet, the Arab fellow, saw to Lake after saying a few more words to the Mustang

Jack stood as Swallowtail disappeared into the cargo area, Looking briefly in time to see the hood of the Mustang split open and the woman jump in, the hood reforming undamaged, so the woman was really a car, amazing. What about the other cars and trucks in the plane ? What about the plane itself ? No FedEx jet had VTOL before. Jack turned around and had to take a step backwards when he found himself nose to nose with Ratchet, "Whoa"

"Is there something I can help you with General O'Neill ?" Ratchet asked. The Arabian dressed man with clear yellow eyes stared intently at him.

Jack took a half step back, "Uh yeah, could you let me pass please, you're a bit close to me for comfort' When Ratchet had stepped aside to let jack get back to the table the Arab stole a glance as well into the cargo area of the plane. Seeing the dimly lit taillights of the Mustang only scant meters away he smiled. Swallowtail was recharging as he had told her to.

* * *

><p>Not far behind them a pair gray optics unseen flew several hundred meters behind the FedEx jet, Doc hummed to himself, he had need to talk to Optimus as fast as possible too, he had information that he'd been sent to find, even tussled with Intel at the same time to get some of it. But still it was worthwhile, and very stupid what that 'Con was trying to do.<p>

Contact Unicron ? He had to be joking! But no, Intel was trying time and again to contact Unicron to take over and destroy another planet, Cybertron just wasn't enough, thankfully Old Strike had the Matrixsomewhere, or was it Optimus that had it ? Nope, Optimus had one of the pieces to the full matrix, Nexus wanted the universes safe and so split his Star Saber into many pieces. One of them was the Matrix of Leadership. Which even though Doc carried it literally within his nose, or trunk portion of his Delorean mode. It never actually chose him like it did Optimus. It just let him carry it as if he were a messenger.

Which Doc partly was. He was both messenger and fellow Autobot looking for a place to call home. He'd met up and spoken with Strike, known commonly as Thunderstrike, a good hearted old coot gave him his most important item to take to Optimus before the first Herald found Earth.

Doc sent a Intralink connection to Lift, {"Oi! Tail-feathers, stop sneezing will ya ? What in the name of Prima did you eat _this time_, Lift ?"}

{"Doc ?"} Came the startled reply

{"Who's askin ?"} Answered the Delorean, {"Where ya headed ?"}

{" DC, stay in my tailwind and you'll get their easier."} Lift replied

Doc snickered over the radio, {"Yeah sure then you'll gas me again, like last time, nope, not gonna do it, I'll stay upstairs now."} There were a couple thumps heard on the roof of the plane as Doc made his landing, {"Keep flyin' Lift, I got a message for Optimus from Strike."}

Lift didn't reply, but did acknowledge the order to keep flying as Doc contacted Optimus, {"Optimus, got some news for you as you requested."} Doc said, {"Turns out Unicron might have a fellow around here somewhere, got into a brief spat with an old foe, Intel. The guy was trying to contact Unicron, but according to Shadow-panther, one of Intel's pets, Unicron isn't answering his calls, but he might. Got in touch with Thunderstrike as well."} Doc said

{"Thunderstrike ?"} Optimus replied, {"There is a name I have not heard for a long long time, Unicron... Intel has often tried and failed to contact Unicron, other 'Cons or 'Bots are stronger then that Decepticon punk."}

{"True, Optimus, true indeed, however, there is also something more, Thunderstrike said that I was to give you the Matrix he was told to watch over, I got it on me now. Only thing is, I'm holding onto Lift's back at the moment hitching a ride, flying on ones own lonesome in a Delorean is tiring after a while, glad I managed to get close enough to grab hold, I'll hitch off before we near the DC landing area. Until then I can hold onto the Matrix piece, my greetings to Ratchet and Ironhide, and say hello to Swallowtail for me."} Doc then went quiet, keeping himself cloaked where he made his currently seat on top of Lift as the Pilot just flew as if nothing was wrong.


	8. Swallowtails Choice

_ Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 8; Swallowtail's Choice_

Not many people were hard to crack like Lake, but the dreams she had were what broke her in the first place, the things that made her originally flee Daniel Marks control sixteen years before. It was normal for one some would guess, for a child to flee their parents, or in this case, parent. Jack mused thoughtfully, reading over the next mission report, this one compiled to Galloway from Lennox about an altercation in a Harbin bar between Lake, Swallowtail and two Decepticon Pretenders.

Lake had easily held her own, at the expense of the establishment, Swallowtail managed to take out the two drones that had also tried to attack the place. Though it left the bar in a shambles. Jacks eyes quicked upwards at the muffled thumps, and the fact that Tim seemed to go thoughtfully quiet. Chuckling once or twice at the time, yet looking seemingly at nothing.

Yet Optimus was actually conversing with others of their kind most likely. The laptop might have been one of them as it seemed to just appear out of nowhere on four legs, crablike, walking sideways to sit atop the table near to Optimus. The Peter Cullen lookalike seemed to not notice the walking laptop, and most likely did for all Jack cared, he looked closely at the pictures in the mission report.

Lake was surely there, martial arts and all according to the security pictures, decking barflies and otherwise, several broken tables. The two women, virtually twins in all appearances, had arrived at the bar location by car. No doubt, Jack thought, that same Mustang. He looked closely at the pictures, there were no markings on the blue eyed womans face. So he assumed it happened before the woman got those marks. Whatever they were.

He set the mission report aside and started reading the next one, this one about the mess in Shanghai four years before. Well, that was ramphant destruction alright, a massive decepticon, what were the Decepticons, Tim had only shown so much, but not who or what a decepticon actually was. Which made him very confused.

The plane started its decent, Jack felt beneath his feet the shifting of speed and lowering of the plane. Which made him slightly nervous, well, there was nothing to worry about, just a simple trip to Washington, what could go wrong ? There was but one word to summerise what could go wrong. And in Jacks mind that word started with a P, and ended in a Y, and the letters inside it were L-E-N-T, and that spelled PLENTY, which naturally meant that whatevery could go wrong, will. Not that he didn't expect it to happen, but he did expect it to come soon-ish.

As Lift started his approach to the airstrip in Washington DC, Doc let go and pushed off of his much larger friend and took to the air on his own. Doc had a important metting, the cloaked Delorean headed for the airstrip, {"Lift, I'm making my approach three meters to your left. Give me half a minute decent time to get on the ground and ahead of you, "}

{"Copy that, good luck, best to decloak so I can see you, "} Lift replied. Doc complied and decloaked.

Inside where he sat Jack noticed a Delorean from nowhere flying in the air. He stared for a moment at the flying car that seemed ot wave before heading downwards at almost a 80 degree angle towards the ground at what had to be really fast. Stupidly fast. But he had to ask, "Am I really seeing a flying Delorean ?"

It was Tim that replied, "Yes indeed, that's Doc, one of our weapons designers, and lead scout." The trucker said. So the car was named Doc.

"Yes, well, he's flying." Jack tried to point out, but Tim ignored him and turned to go into the cargo area, as the man did so Swallowtail came out from the cargo area and went to sit by Lake. Obviously thinking, or had been doing just that.

"He always does, he's a flier, and a landgoer." Ratchet spoke up. Swallowtail had a smirk on her face when she saw how Jack was acting, Lennox was asleep and Epps was on his phone with his wife.

"What ?" Jack asked looking at the Arab as if he grew a second head. Swallowtail sat down on the seat next to Lake, the woman in r ed slept like a rock a plane. Put her in a plane Jack knew, and she'd zonk right out, any kind of flying system, which might be why she stank at flying a fighter jet, but alarmingly survived every crash so easy. Jack mused it might be her background, what she truly was.

Jake then remembered that Lake had also just fought off a battlehardened Alesian soldier, possibly decades older then her, maybe even centrties older then her. But it didn't matter. His attention then went back on Ratchet, "How can a car fly, and still be drivable ? It's not possible to fly and drive a car, unless its one of those newfangled Chevys..."

That made Swallowtail chrip with laughter, Bee was a chevy Camaro, and he wasn't a flier, so how could a car fly ? Simple, give it a hoverconversion, "You'll see when we land." She said to Jack, she nudged Lake. Speaking in Mandarin. "Lake... Lake... wake up!" Lake murred slightly and groaned as the pain of wakefulness washed overher. She was not going to like what she was going to see when she got out of Lift.

* * *

><p>At the landing site a massive tractor trailer was waiting, with it were three men, Galloway, Morshower and Vice President Marks. The three men were waiting for the plane to land and none of them were expecting to see a Delorean land only seconds before the plane came for landing.<p>

Galloway ignored it, Morshower was slightly concerned, but Marks just stared mouth agape. However his concerns were saved for later. Marks turned to Morshower and Galloway, "I'll prep the Tube." he said, The Tube, the Stasia Tube, a device that could heal skin organs, anything, even clothing, within minutes or hours. One woman needed to be in there almost two months, due to the injuries she had sustained in a car accident.

Lift landed the jet carefully, just barely touching the low slung delorean motor car under him. The driver of the silver car pulled closer ot the massive truck and trailer. The driver, a wild, frost haired fellow stepped out of the Delorean and looked to the loading ramp to Lift. Expecting a certain semi truck.

Lift landed and settled on his landing gear. The ramp opened and the first Autobot to roll out from the massive cargojet was Ironhide, the pickup was all but anchored to the ramp as it lowered without a sound, allowing the black truck to roll off the ramp and onto the tarmac. Followed almost right away by Optimus' truck.

The mighty diesel rumbled down the ramp without too much trouble. The massive red flame truck was then followed by a medical hummer, and lastly a ultity cart with a massive Honda PowerMax Generator on its bed, then some men came out, with them were some smaller robots, one of them carried a laptop in one hand.

Lastly a woman exited the plane, in her arms was Lake, Swallowtail carried the woman in red close to her arms. She was her guardian for the moment now. That made things slightly easier for Lake. She had someone she could trust with her life, Morshower had seen videos of the two women fighting side by side together, but never had he seen them in person before.

Galloway had only met Optimus, Ironhide and Ratchet face to face in their protomodes. So he was OK with it. Moreshower too had met them as well, and actually liked the pickup truck. A lot.

The three men went to join Galloway and Morshower. "Col, Sgt, good to see you back in one piece. I take it things didn't go well ?" Morshower said, eying Jack briefly before seeing Swallowtail ,and Lake in her condition carried by the Autobot as if the Autobot herself depended on Lake herself to survive.

"One could say that sir, but I think we can tell you most of it now," Lennox replied, "Lake got into a fight of some kind with a guy from another planet, long story short, the guy and her go into it pretty good, she was able to jar the other guy enough to get free and took off, however before that when they were trading blows the guy had managed to score some damage."

Morshower looked thoughtful but it was Galloway that spoke up, "Well, that means things are going downhill fast, one of the Autobots got us into a connection uplink system not too long ago. Found a few more of our friends. And then some, that attack in New York was a starting pad, two more attacks happened here, but they were thwarted before they gained momentum."

When the Semi truck disembarked from the plane Doc moved from his car towards the m an exiting his truck. The two hugged tightly for a minute as if seeing each other after a long time before breaking the hug.

"It sure is good to see you again, Optimus old boy, you haven't changed a bit" Doc said to Optimus.

Optimus smiled, "Nor have you, never exepected you to try and actually latch onto Lift when Lift was flying, the only time you'd try that was in space, remember."

"Yeah well, it was needed this time around, but hey, so what, Listen," Doc said, his voice going low, he removed from the folds of his loud coat a strange metal item, something that looked like it belonged in a mesuem of some sort. "This is Thunderstrikes piece of the Star Saber, he said to give it to you when I saw you, so here you go. you'll need it."

Optimus took hold of the strange item. It glimmered blue, or at least, appeared to as he held it, "This news about Intel trying to connect to Unicron worries me, Doc, do you know of what this could mean ?"

Doc shook his head, "No idea, All I know is that most of it has something to do with the Icegate we found on Cybertron Zulu." He said, "Intel mentioned it a couple times when we last saw each other, he's partly the reason I got the Delorean for an alt mode in the first place, that and I like the look of it you know, nice and stylish." Doc concluded. The truth was, Doc liked the Delorean design and wanted to use it in the first place, it was very dependable when he went against Intel and Shadowpanther two months before

"Even so, it worries me that Intel is trying to get in touch with Unicron, but since you said that Unicron is refusing to answer his calls. Makes me wonder who Unicron might pick. Megatron's gone, so that's out." Optimus said thoughtfully.

Doc nodded, "I know what you mean Optimus. I'd always thought that Starscream'd kick the slagheap after Sam nailed him in the eyes two years ago, but nope, He's still around, nearly got him too this morning before tagging along to here over Denver." Doc said.

"So its possible that one of the other Decepticons still on this planet might be a Herald for Unicron at some point." Optimus said thoughtfully, He looked at the Star Saber piece in his hand, "To think that Unicron would try to take us on this planet... What does he want ?"

"Wish I could answer that, for all I know it might be a dead end, a false lead or some such. Intel is known for using information against even his own comrades." Doc said. "So he can lie when he wants to, misleading information, that's what he deals in." Optimus nodded, agreeing with the wild haired man.

"Anything else ?" Optimus asked. Doc didn't just hitch a ride without a reason, and just giving the Star Saber piece was one of the reasons he may have hitched a ride.

"Well, After seeing Intel, I wanted ot speak to you as soon as possible regarding him and Unicron, after that give you the Matrix piece, once you had it I figured I was safe that I didn't have it on me anymore." Doc replied, "Though there is one last thing"

"Last thing ? Nothing is ever 'last' with you, Doc." Optimus said, Doc snickered as Optimus kept a straight face, Waiting for the Delorean to say his piece.

"As you guys lifted off with Lift, a police crusier was driving away, I marked the Energon Signature" Energon Signature ? Optimus was now listening intently as Doc explained, "It matched Swallowtail, I think it was Downshift. But I'm not sure. She's a killer, very... not too bright is too harsh to say, more like too crazy. A crazy killer. She was pulling away when you came into view, but she left the airport when I lifted off to hichhike." Doc said. "Dunno why she was at the airport, its bad enough that Hive was seen at NORAD, I'm still surprised Swallowtail stood up to that monster." Doc had a look of admiration for the younger 'Bot seen in his eyes.

Optimus nodded, He too was surprised that Swallowtail didn't turn tail and flee at the sight of Hive, Instead both Ironhide and the Mustang fought off the massive Decepticon. And got it all on recording as well apparently from Doc. Doc though then snickered, "Heh, almost got hit in the head too watching that fight, darned helicopter." That made even Optimus smile.

"You always were a reckless driver, now flier," he mused,

Doc nodded "I agree. In fact, I like my driving ablity, I'm durable." He pointed at himself a few times, then rubbed the spot he poked at a few times as if in pain.

Optimus just chuckled, "There's a few people I want you to meet' He said, clapping the wild haired man on the shoulder and the pair turned towards the other men and walked towards them, Lennox Doc knew, and Epps as well, he shook both mens hands Jack he just looked at with a confused eyebrow raised and shook hands with both Morshower and Galloway

Optimus made the introductions, "Gentlemen, two of my know my comrade in arms here, Doc, you know Colonel Lennox, and Sergeant Epps, let me introduce you to General Jack O'Niell, Secretary Galloway, and General Morshower."

"Pleasure to meet you three, good to see you fellows again." Doc said to Jack and the two other men, and then greeted Lennox and Epps. Doc turned towards Galloway, and Morshower, "I take it the Blackhawks watching the fight with the giant scorpion at NORAD belongs to you guys ? Well, the pilot almost nailed me in the back of the head"

Morshower nodded, "I noticed the camera wobble as if it struck something. Good thing you're OK, no scratches ?" Doc shook his head, it was impossible to scratch stainless steel, even moreso to scratch a Cybertronian stainless steel car for that matter

"I'm fine, got a little dizzy though from that bit, the downdraft had me off guard." Doc said, he was fine, just a bit shook up most likely.

* * *

><p>Inside the trailer Marks was first overjoyed to see Lake, who was mostly out of it, and scared for her life, and partly alarmed at how much of a resemblance between Swallowtail, the woman that carried lake in her arms, and the Mustang herself, he did a doubletake before focusing on the task at hand. "Set her here, quickly now." Swallowtail did so. Even though Lake said nothing it was clear she was scared. But she did not move to protest as Swallowtail laid her in the Stasia Tube.<p>

Marks brought up a file on a dataslate and looked through it, "This is not good, Thankfully your medical friend was very helpful, had you not gotten her ot him before getting her to me, there would be nothing either of your guy or me to do to help her." He said, he looked through Lake's data, what was uploaded onto the screen was her current condition, and last known condition.

"Three broken ribs, a punctured lung, though healing, fractures in several more ribs, a cracked chestbone, its a small wonder it didn't shatter clean through her heart." He mused. He pressed some keys, The Stasia tube sealed, Lake closed her eyes as a breathing system was lowered over her nose, mouth and eyes. Then she slept as the healing fluids filled the Tube.

Swallowtail watched her, never blinking nor moving as she stood within a meter from the side of the device. Marks watched this and spoke up, "You must be Swallowtail." He said, the Mustang didn't turn to face him, yet she did nod slightly, "Morshower told me a little about you and the Autobots, I guess it is you guys I am to thank for keeping Lake safe."

It was then that Swallowtail turned her gaze towards him, unblinking blue eyes stared at his brown eyes. As if daring him to blink, "What is she to you ?" Swallowtail then asked, her voice alarmingly like Lake's own

Marks looked intently at Swallowtail as he replied, "To you she is like a sister yes ?" Swallowtail nodded stiffly, unsure of where he was going with his tangent, "To me she is a daughter, the family I never had." Rather then spill his life story he gave the Autobot the basics. Telling how he created Lake as his daughter, and yet unable to call her family due to all the military and the government overseeing his projects, he wanted to create his family, someone to call his own. But the military wanted otherwise. And that resulted in Lake.

But to him Lake was his daughter, and he was her father, even though she was scared of him and had fled their home years before. Swallowtail listened intently, never speaking, time seemed to fly apst as she listened to Marks tell his side of the story, which contrasted Lakes own, But said nothing.

Finally Marks stood from the console, "She is healing faster then other times past, she'll be awake in no time. I'll be outside." He said, passing Swallowtail, giving the Mustang a wide berth before heading outside the trailer. Swallowtail heard everything outside while inside, and Jack didn't sound happy either.

* * *

><p>"Alright, someone tell me just what the hell is going on ?" He said after shaking hands with Doc, who looked a lot like a guy Jack had seen on TV.<p>

"Simple" Doc replied, "Before you know it, you'll have Unicron on your doorstep, at least, one of his Heralds, the Fallen was just one of them. He's got plenty more. It is merely a matter of just what will happen when a Herald shows up."

Optimus nodded, "Only a Prime, or one of equal strength can take on a herald."

"If there is one, Intel kept hinting at Unicron coming back, then there was Downshift spying on Lift." Doc said.

That was a new name, And it surely got Galloways attention. "Lift ?" He asked. He did not know of such an Autobot. "Who is Lift ?"

Doc smirked, Optimus explained "Lift was our method of transportation ot get here Mr Galloway." he pointed towards the FedEx pilot as he arrived to sign off a few things, only to make it clear that he was not a true pilot as the guy disappeared as if he were a hologram, which it was at that point. A few cranks, a couple clanks and a loud CRUNK, was heard as Lift transformed, he was about double the hight of Jetfire. Primus Bless his Spark, Doc mused, he missed the old coot.

Optimus said with something of pride, "Mr Galloway, Jack O'Niell, General Morshower, I would like to introduce you to Lift. Lift, you know these gentlemen already."

"That I do, Gentlemen, If you'll excuse me I must go, there are packages to deliver." With that Lift lifted into the air and transformed swiftly and shot off to places unknown.

Jack stared open mouthed, "I... need a drink" He said, Optimus traded looks with Doc, this guy clearly didn't get it.

"Did you give him a sit rep on... ?" Doc asked

Optimus nodded "I did, but he brushed it aside, asked instead about..."

"…..Swallowtail, thought so, a lot of people wonder about that mustang, now, there's another thing that bothers me, this guy Marks, he is..."

"…..Vice President of America, where we help hunt Decepticons, Galloway is..."

"….A big pain in the butt I'm sure. Anyhow, that Galloway fella, when did he.. "

"…..Four years ago shortly after the Shanghai incident around the time of the attack of the Fallen, you don't think..."

"...Oh but I do, you see, it's possible..."

"...Well I don't believe that, it's not that he's..."

"...I didn't say he was, now, if he did..."

"...If he did he'd be dead like Browns and Bagman, who by the way..."

"...made eccelient cannon fodder" broke in a third voice, apparently Brains liked this kind of banter too.

Doc waved off the laptop and continued, "If Bagman tried to get close enough to the Star Saber hilt Unicron could have been alerted, Anyhow Any news on..."

"…. Home ? Yes, we have found the device known as the Icegate, I think it is possible..."

"… Yes I know that already, you think We can get access to it and go home ? If we do get access..."

"….Would the others want to go too ?..." Optimus anseered the question before it was asked. All they had to do now was see if they could get access to the Stargate.

Now if they could get access to the Stargate, would they all go to Cybertron Zulu, or would they want to split their team again, some remain on earth, and others to go home ? That was a bit question, a question that Optimus was afraid might get answered that Earth was their home.

Optimus turned towards the other gentlemen, a questioning look in his eye. Galloway saw it and spoke first, "Lets go inside. We can talk better there." The shock of seeing Lift transform and take off. Minutes later they were all inside, the trailer contaning Lake and Swallowtail was also moved inside, Lift had moved Swallowtails mustang frame next to Optimus' truck before he transformed and left.

The group went into the building, the Pentagon and went right to Morshowers office, Doc, Optimus, Lennox, Epps, and Ratchet and Brains. Ironhide chose to stay outside to keep an eye on the Three Stooges, and also Wheelie and Screecher and Frenzy who were going berzerk at the time. It was best ot keep an eye on the two

Most of the world knew of the Cybertronians, and some people didn't, like Jack for example, he had no idea just what had wrecked his hometown of Chicago two years before. But thanksfully he was going to get the full on lowdown on what exacty was going on on Earth, even if it killed him.

Jack took his seat when Lennox and Epps did, Galloway leaning against Morshowers desk as Morshower sat on the coffee table., The three Autobots remained standing, Brains sat in his laptop form next to Galloway on the desk. "As you know doubt know these three gentlemen are not human." Galloway started to say.

Jack nodded, "I figured as muchwhen the semi started talking." He looked at Optimus, "Who is Peter Cullen ? You look like him." He said, Optimus just smiled.

Galloway continued, though partly annoyed at having been interrupted by Jack, "The Transformers, as we call them, hail from a planet called Cybertron, it is that planet that the war they have against the Decepticons originated." He said, he looked at Optimus to continue for him as he was lost himself at that point.

Optimus generated a hologram, it showed Cybertron, "During the initial stages of the war, Cybertron was once a fertle planet, Our home world was a peaceful planet at first, and most of it untouched by the war. But it was not until the place called home by Swallowtail was in harms way when the Decepticons came calling. At the time Swallowtail was young, her sister, Downshift, lived with her. Until Starscream came. He lured Downshift to the Decepticons under Megatron, but Swallowtail refused to join, because of that she was nearly killed in an ambush when all the young 'Bots were brought into the war. No Cybertronian is born of the Well of the Allspark without knowledge of weapons of some form."

Jack looked confused, "The mustang has a sister ? You mean Lake ?" He asked

Morshower shook his head no, he had a file labled PROJECT L.A.K.E. ONE in his hands. "Lake is not an alien robot, that much is sure, however there are some concerns of her being a pet project of the Military, Lake never spoke about her past, nor does she really open up to anyone. Other then her car." Morshower said casting a glance at Lennox. The man sat straighter

"Lake rarely speaks about her past, and when we tried asking her a few months ago of her lack of sleep and short temper she insisted it was nothing, but we knew that Swallowtail knew, but nither one told us anything, after a few weeks the questions stopped, Lake was with Swallowtail about six years before Megatron and Sentinel Prime tried to destroy Earth last year." Lennox said.

"But why do they look so alike ?" jack asked.

"Swallowtail transcanned Lake, but took other clothing styles, possibly from elsewhere or maybe a movie set for all we know, not many people dress like she does in that design." Lennox said. Jack went quiet

Moreshower spoke up, "All this leaves is a direct question" He said, they had been explaining to Jack about an hours length of time about the Autobots and their war, why they came to earth, and now that left Morshower to ask the direct question.

"I'm listening," Jack said, Though he might not have wanted to say those words, already wishing he never said them

"Can the Autobots access this Stargate as you call it to try and establish some sort of connection to their homeworld, or at least one of its bases where their own stargate, or Icegate, is located ?" Morshower asked. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs stared intently at Jack. Waiting for his answer.

After a minute Jack nodded, "I'll call Carter and have her try and connect, a few months ago we connected to a frozen planet of some sort and sent a guy through, no idea what happened to him though. It was the only iceball of a planet I remember seeing" He said. He stood up "Once connected I'll order a probe to be sent through, once we can get some data from the other side we can get it to you guys or you might want ot be there when we dial out." So it was settled, the Autobots had access to the Stargate, but only so much, if they could connect and manage to get home, who would go ?

Optimus called a commwide transmission in Cybertronian, "Everyone listen carefully, we have a possible link back home, I want a sitrep of who wants to go through to home and see how things fare, or remain here. Speak up."

Swallowtail was the first to speak, from her vatage point watching Lake and her drivers vitals she said over the comms "I want to stay with Lake. Even if I could go back to Cybertron Zulu, I'd still want to be with Lake." She said.

Optimus gave the radio equavleant of a sigh and concerned noise, "I understand that reasoning Swallowtail, the choice is yours to make, and no matter what happens, nothing can deter you from that choice. If you truly want to stay here with Lake, we will honor that choice."

Ironhide agreed with Swallowtail, "Even if we could go home, Optimus, there would be nothing for us there, our place is here on Earth. Cybertron is lost to us somewhere in space, but if we can get a connection to fall back to should we require it. Then not all hope is lost."

"Very well, we should know within the hour of what transpires at Stargate Command the place that houses this worlds Icegate." Optimus said.

* * *

><p>About an hour later Lake started to wake up inside the stasia tube, Marks was once again at the computer, monitoring her vitals, everything was in the green, Nothing was amiss at all. "She should be waking up now. Its basically stasis so to speak, while the fluid heals in and out, even heals clothing as you can see." he pointed to Lakes once torn and shot up arm sleeve, and I t was reformed and undamaged, as if it were never even harmed.<p>

At the Autobots steel eyed look marks said "No recoditioning went in at all, just healing fluids, she was too damaged to even attempt such a thought." The fluid begain ot drain from the Stasia tube. Marks went to the computer screen and looked through the data.

"According to this readout, whatever she fought against was strong enough to puntchure her left lung, break two ribs, and fracture the chestbone. I'm still surprised that she stayed on feet so long." He said, Swallowtail was too. But it didn't matter now.

As soon as the liquid drained from the tank the seal disappeared as if it had never been there. For humans, this guy was pretty high tech. Lake moaned slightly, then gargled and rolled over fast and grabbed the first wastebin she could reach and spat into it. Healing fluid in the mouth never tasted good, ever.

Swallowtail smiled and bent over to help her friend sit up, "How are you feeling ?" She asked. Lake looked far better then she had before, so now was pretty good.

"Like I've been hit by a truck" Lake replied. She shook her head to get rid of the dizziness and her eyes went wide at the man she saw at the computer, she went stiff, Swallowtail smiled slightly.

"Relax, Your father helped heal you, Ratchet only could do so much, and according to your dad, had we not gotten you to Ratchet, then to here in time you would have been lost, now how would that make me feel ?"

"Worse then me." Lake said in Mandarin, asking then, "What in the name of Primus were you thinking taking me to see him ? Next thing we'll know you get sent to a scrap yard and I get sent back to reconditioning to kill anything I see! Why did you bring me here ? There are other Tubes."

"But he is the only man we could trust, besides, I never left your side and I watched his ever move. The only soldiers here are NEST soldiers, so we're safe here to leave as we like." Swallowtail said.

Lake stared hard at her only friend in the world, "You are sure that my father only wanted to heal me, and not try to take me back into his house against my will ?" She asked. If this was true, Lake was in luck

Swallowtail nodded, "Yes, he wanted to heal you, nothing more." She said, Marks remained at the computer, making sure everything was in good order, but something caught him off guard,

"We have a single bogey on radar" he said, Swallowtail saw it too on her wireframe map, It was her sister, Downshift.

"Come with me, I may need your help." She said taking hold of Lake's hand and all but pulling her from the trailer. If the two of them could turn her sister back to the Autobots, and Ratchet did his medical mericale on her twin. It was very possible that Swallowtail's family could be complete. But She did not know that someone else also had their eyes on her Spark.

* * *

><p>Swallowtail pulled into a secluded farm lane and drove for another mile or so, another car, a red Dodge Challenger also turned onto the road a minutel atfer and followed the Mustang, soon enough the red Challenger rumbled into a driveway, a empty house, a few large barns and a rather massive storeage building, a hangar of some sort, was also there, the Mustang was driving towards it. Downshift followed closely behind.<p>

Once inside the massive hangar Lake stepped out, holding her hip as it was still sore. Swallowtail closed her door and then a twiching and clicking noise was heard as the silvery red Autobot transformed to her full 15 meter hight.

Downshift rumlbed to a halt within the hangar and Lake shut the door to keep out unwanted eyes. But she was too late to find that one nearby, Swallowtail was more focused on her sister then anything else, and that left Lake to keep an eye on things around the place.

"Hello sister" Swallowtail said as Downshift transformed, her hight a little shorter, but the design and appearance of both was uncanny, If it were not for their colors, Lake mused, I'd have mixed them as one for the other. "What did you want to talk about ?"

"Headgame is up to something, and Molotov is acting weird. I dont like it" Downshift said, that meant something. "I think he is trying ot make something for Unicron ot use, thankfully Unicron is not interested in me, apparently I am not herald matrial. But Intel kept droning about it until that silver Delorean showed up. That was about a week ago"

Swallowtail sinckered at mention of Doc, "He did mention Intel blathering about Unicron and him coming home, or some such." She said.

"Yeah so ? Does it mean that something is going ot happe n that we don't ?" Downshift asked

"if it did it brings up something confusing to me." Swallowtail said, she gave her sister a steely eyed look, "When you had those Decepticons attack our house when you left, when Ratchet and Ironhide appeared, why did you stay behind when the others fled ?" She asked

"When we were born from the Well, I heard Primus speak," Downshift said, This was new, normally the 'Con was a killer and tried constantly to kill Swallowtail, or injure her. But now that she seemed worried or scared for her own life made sense. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Swallowtail mused softly.

"What did he say ?" Swallowtail asked, clearly curious to what Primus would have said to a Con at their birth.

"There is a bond that is between members of a family, its love for the other deep down inside, It is why I stayed behind when the others fled, I wanted to make sure you were safe." Downshift admitted. It was hard for her to admit such a thing.

"Why tell me this now ?" Swallowtail asked.

"Because if I did not, it would come out sooner or ater, or not at all." Downshift replied. She noticed Lake, "So you brought your humkan along I see, any reason ?"

"To keep watch. And make sure we don't try to kill each other. So she said." Swallowtail replied.

"I wouldn't kill you, ever." Downshift said.

Both Cybertronians failed to notice the Decepticlone ready to strike, the Assassin was ready with his thermal sword. The Mustang was his target. Headgame had said to kill her spark, once that was done, Downshift could do as Headgame wanted her to do.

The only problem; Nobody expected Lake, or the Dread Humvee that seemingly sat in the hangar. Battlestrike noticed the 'Clone and was secretly watching it, basking his precense as a normal black Humvee.

The Assassin jumped out of the shadows at the two Cybertronians standing in their protomodes. Without a word it jumped at Swallowtail, she grabbed at his wrist and threw it aside, the Assiassin crushed a old trailer and scramled to its feet. Withdrawing its thermal longsword it slashed madly at Swallowtail and Downshift, seperateing them and dashing into the shadows.

"Did you plan this ?" Swallowtail asked her sister, Downshift shook her head

"No" she replied, "If I had, then you'd be dead already." She had withdraw her halberd and held it ready, "Where is it ?"

"To the left!" The assiassin struck again, kicking at Downshift hard, the 'Con went flying, Swalowtail tried in fvain to keep the massive fast moving sword away from her but the Assassin was far too fast. The sight of the Dread made it worse as Battlespike apepared

"What the Primus!" Swallowtail shrieked, her attention on the Dread, the Assissin struck, jumping on Swallowtail the Decpticlone stabbed its sword into the Mustangs back, hard and fast, too fast for the shields the Scout used to keep herself alive to catch and defelct as they were too slow to activate in time.

The sword stabbed through Swallowtails chest, her spark split in two. The assissin withdrew the weapon and turned to flee when Downshift shrieked and threw her Halberd fast as lighting, Lake withdrew her sidearm and opened fore on the killer of her car.

But it was as Swallowtail fell to the ground, "Lake!" She said, her eyes flickering "Run! Run!" The color faded from the Mustangs optics.

And then the explosion happened, lake went flying, as did Downshift. Both Human and Cybertronian crashed to the cement as Battlespike threw something o f a bomb that stuck to the killer of the Mustang.

The last thing Lake saw was Swallowtails lifeless optics as the world went dark.


	9. Unicrons Lament

_Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 9; Unicron's Lament_

First there was darkness, the last thing she remembered seeing, then weird light patterns, and rocks, lots of rocks. Lake found herself wandering, the last thing she remembered seeing was Swallowtail and telling her to run. But she blacked out. So where had the rocks come from ?

She heard voices, lots of voices. Turning she found the owners of those voices, herself one of them, "Where am I."

"We see how you loved Swallowtail. This shows a bond stronger then that of a friend." One of the Seven Primes said.

"Optimus currently holds the Matrix of Leadership", it was Nexus, the second Prime.

"It is said that the Matrix is not given, it is earned. Optimus holds the Matrix, go to him, blend the Matrix with Swallowtails spark. Only she and Optimus can defeat Unicron's Herald." Said the first Prime

"Unicron ?" Lake asked.

"The destroyer of all things good." Nexus replied. "Go now, save your world, save Swallowtail!" With those words Lake felt herself getting pulled somewhere then blackness once more overtook her.

Her eyes exploded open, she was in the backseat of a red sports car. "Where am I." Lake asked.

"I'm taking you to Optimus, Battlespike is carrying Swallowtail, if it weren't for him we'd have both been killed. I almost thought you dead myself. And wanted to leave you, but Battlespike insisted I carry you to Optimus." Downshift said, clearly bored and slightly annoyed, she didn't like humans very much, but Battlespike insisted that Lake return with them to the others at the temporary home for the the Autobots just outside Washington.

Downshift was nervous, the red Dodge Challenger rumbled onto a lane, the Humvee right behind towing a black trailer, Swallowtail laid inside the trucks trailer.

The first Autobot outside the mansion to notice was Ironhide, and he was startled to see Lake stepping out of Downshift. "Something wrong Lake ?" It was the look on her face that made it clear, "Where is Swallowtail ?"

"In the Dreads trailer" Downshift replied transforming, now ready to face Ironhides wrath.

"Why ? Why is she in that thing's trailer ? What happened out there ? I was told you and your sister were just going to chat with each other, not kill each other!" Ironhide was almost ready to attack Downshift, But it was Lake's words that made him halt.

"Where is Optimus." Lake asked, she was directed into the larger garage. Optimus was inside it thinking. The massive truck was parked, but the Pretender Unit was seated at table, a holographic map was set up, Doc was pacing. Both however turned their gaze towards Lake when she entered the room.

Optimus stood when he saw the level of damage the woman had taken, burn damage apparently. "Lake, what is it ?" He asked

"Unicron is coming, Swallowtail died from something, but a Dread, I think that is what Downshift called him, brought her here in a trailer, she's outside now, Downshift as well." Lake said, her eyes downcast, she was still confused to that dream, which it must have been.

"How do you know about Unicron ?" Optimus asked.

"A dream, one would say" Lake replied, "why, does it matter what I dream, I know of a way to save Swallowtail." she said.

"I think you might have a problem there, if Unicron is coming to earth, or even sending a Herald, then we have worse troubles to worry about." Said Doc, though it pained him greatly at the loss of Swallowtail, but they had to move on.

Lake turned towards Doc, "If there is a Herald coming then only Optimus and Swallowtail can take the freak on and win. I only have to wake up Swallowtail..."

"…. By merging her spark with the Matrix I carry" Optimus finished the trailing thought, He looked at Lake, "You love Swallowtail that much to save her when to you, she is just a car ?"

Lake matched Optimus' stare, "Swallowtail is more then just a car, to me she is my friend, my sister, my only family." She said, "I'd do anything to save her life, to bring her back."

Optimus saw that Lake meant what she said, but Doc was more concerned about Unicron sending a Herald, "If Intel is the Herald, we're all doomed." He said, it was then that Brains appeared.

"We got trouble" he said as he climbed onto the desk and stood on it, "Some weird shit is going on in New York again, Starscream fled the area, I took a good look at everything in the area, including aircraft cameras, I think its a herald, its not Lift, nor is it any known 'Con." he said

"What about Downshift ?" Doc suddenly asked out of the blue. "What do we do to keep her from killing any of us, but also safe and out of harms way ?"

"Keep her with me, She mentioned that even though she often wished her sister dead, she could never do the deed, nor could she order it, She said that when she h ad her old home attacked, she remained behind a little longer before fleeing when Ironhide and Ratchet went there to help keep Swallowtail safe." Lake turned her gaze from Doc to Optimus. "I do not want them to think that saving Swallowtail then was in vain now that she is gone."

Optimus gave a hand look towards Lake, and also to Doc, "Lake, I understand that you want to save Swallowtail, But this new event in New York we must look into. I am sure that Swallowtail's Death was not in vain"

"I was told that only you and Swallowtail could take on the Herald, And that leaves me with a question, who is Unicron, why does he want to attack Earth." Lake said rather tersely, She was no pushover either.

Optimus looked at her, "We were given access to this worlds Icegate, or Stargate, or whatever it is. We can send word to home, and maybe gain some comrades as well. Hive was also spotted nearby to NORAD Mountain."

"And Swallowtail is dead, Her sister is outside right now, along with what Downshift called a Dread." Lake retorted. She stared hard at Optimus, "How can you leave her and not help her ? You are Optimus Prime, you're the leader of the Autobots. How can you just let her be dead ?"

"Lake." Optimus said softly, "There are some things one just cannot do when they lead others. Many have been lost to us in this War, I will not loose any more. Swallowtail was a brave soldier. Her death will not be in vain." He said.

Lake stared at him, "I do not believe that you will just walk away and leave her outside!" She looked ready to hit Optimus, though he knew that Lake was able to take a lot of pain, and also give a lot of pain as well. But now. This, this was too much for the woman in red to take.

"We have a herald of Unicron to worry about now. So as soon as he is dealt with we will use the Matrix to reactivate Swallowtail." Optimus said.

Lake shook her head no, "No, we will do that in the opposite way, Give me the matrix. Swallowtail and I will meet you in New York. Deal." She stared intently at Optimus.

Optimus stood from the table and got into his truck, a minute passed and he transformed and stood tall. "I will see her now, lets go outside." He said, he walked out of the massive hangarlike structure.

Downshift was startled to see Optimus prime come out of the Hangar, the massive 'Bot was scary when he was in a mood. Though it helped a little that she was there, she hoped. Though she stepped back, well, tried to, Ironhide had a solid grip on her. Optimus just looked at her, "What are you doing here ?" He asked Swallowtails sister.

The red Challenger just smirked, "Wouldn't you like to know." She retorted, But at his insistent gaze she continued, "Battlespike insisted I bring Lake here to you guys. But I swear on my spark that I did not kill my sister!" Downshift struggled against Ironhide.

Optimus merely nodded towards the black truck, who let the red dodge loose, Downshift was not one to cower, but she was one to be wary of Optimus Prime, Any Decepticon could withstand Autobots, but if those Autobots were Ironhide and Optimus, there was no chance. None, for her. "Tell me what happened, now." Optimus said. Lake had also left the massive hangar, Doc also transforming as well, the silver Autobot with wild hair pointing off his head looked like a much larger Brains.

Downshift explained everything, every last detail. Optimus finally nodded when she was done speaking. "You may go if you wish. But if you tell anyone of what you have told me, or any thing for that matter of what you did with your sister today, I wont hold Ironhide back. Understand." Downshift just nodded.

Optimus turned to the Dread who stood nearby, Battlespike stood there, at attention, even though he was a former Decepticon, it did not matter, how had the Dreads gotten there ? "Who are you ?" Optimus asked him

Battlespike stood at attention, Even though one of the other Autobots had weapons trained on him, "My name is Battlespike, sir." He said as requested

"Who is your leader, no Dread works alone." Optimus demanded, Lennox drove into view in a light pink colored truck, It was Pinky, a tractor also appeared pulling what looked like a horse trailer, inside were the Three Stooges doubtless, and also someone they had snatched trying to trespass. Inside were two Alesians, even though Pinky wanted to shoot them, and Wheelie too, Frenzy said no, Optimus may want to see them. So Lennox agreed, both Alesian men were directed into the horse trailer pulled by the blue and white New Holland tractor.

So there was something of a mexican standoff, yet Battlespike spoke as requested, "My leader is Thunderstrike, a Seeker. Sir" He said to Optimus, the black Humvee Dread stood to the side of his now open flat trailer, Swallowtail laid on the bed of the trailer, her optics lifeless and her spark dead.

Optimus looked at her protoform, so young, only 55 Cybertronian years of age, and yet so well and efficient at doing orders and making sure things were set up properly, always making sure Lake was safe. And he had the only thing to save her life. But Lake insisted that she do it.

Optimus stood there, He called out a single name, "Lake" Lake came into view, her eyes locked on Swallowtail. Battlespike undid the chains that held the limp form of Swallowtail to the trailer during transport and stepped back, keeping his four eyes on Optimus, keeping his head bowed, the true look of a servant or task doer.

Lake looked up at Optimus as he slid open his spark casing, the Matrix floated out, he held it then bent down to her level, holding it out to her, "If what the Primes told you is true, then what Sam did for me will also do the same for Swallowtail. Her spark casing is open. Incert it there." He said.

She nodded and took hold of the odd item, it looked like a piece of mseuem art. Like some guy when nuts and made something out of metal and blue light. Nevertheless she took it and went towards Swallowtails limp form and climbed onto it. "I hope this works" She said softly to herself before driving the Matrix into the gaping hole in Swallowtails lifeless spark

For a minute nothing happened, then a low hum, From Lake's vantage point she saw where the point of the Matrix touched was a glint of blue, which steadily grew brighter. Backing up and falling off of her friend as Swallowtail spat whatever was in her mouth as her optics winked on a bright luminescent blue. She coughed a few seconds then spotted Lake, "Lake..." She said softly a smile appearing on her face. Lake smiled then. Her own heart hammering as Swallowtail saw her sister staring, her own mouth agape in both shock and what had to be joy.

But it was Optimus and Ironhide standing over her along with the Dread, standing nearby and rather submissive as well. "Something tells me I wont like what I'm about to hear." The Mustang said as she rolled over and started to stand up. "What is a Dread doing here ?"

"He brought you here." Optimus replied, "and your sister is here as well." It was unclear of where the Matrix went, though what made things sightly strange for the Mustang was she felt better then she ever had in her life.

"What happened to me ? How did I get here ?" She asked Optimus, but then heard him say about the dread, she turned her gaze towards the Dread, Battlespike kept his distance and also kept his posture of a submissive servant. "Who is he ?" Swallowtail was not exactly chosen, but she was healed of all her injuries. But now her focus was on the Dread, Battlespike however never looked up until Swallowtail addressed him with . "What is your name ?".

"Battlespike, I work for Thunderstrike, a Seeker, Ma'am." He said. Battlespike was one of the lowest ranking Dreads under Thunderstrike.

"Why are you here ?" It was Lake to ask that, she had gotten to her feet.

"I was under orders to watch Headgame, his is crazy and doing really crazy things at this moment, One of which is the Decepticlone that killed you, Ma'am." Battlespike said, looking briefly to Swallowtail before saying "I insisted to Downshift to bring you both here where others of your group were. Downshift agreed after a minute. The Assassin is dead." Battlespike went quiet.

What alarmed Swallowtail was the color of the Dreads eyes, brilliant white. As if he were a neutral, but he wasn't. He worked for Thunderstrike "You mean that guy with the lightning gun ? That Thunderstrike ?" She asked.

Battlespike nodded, "yes, and he sent me to keep an eye on Headgame, Thunderstrike defected long ago. It was through him that you were saved when those Decepticons showed up when you were just a sparkling. He always looked out for you. Or did you not know that ?"

Swallowtail got to her feet then, her gaze landed on her sister. "Downshift, surprised to see you here instead of trying to run. Why are you here ?"

"I'm here because he insisted I bring Lake here while he brought you here. Can I go yet ?" Downshift asked, Swallowtail just smirked and shook her head. However it was Optimus who spoke in answer to her.

"Not yet, Once I have the questions I seek..." He was unable to speak anymore as a radio call came over the comms

It was Pinky, "Optimus, we got trouble! Two men tried to sneak in, Wheelie and Frenzy recognised them both as Alesians. We're bringing them to you now, they surprisingly cooperated and came along. They are curious of us. And also want to know where their 'Puddledjumper' went."

Oh no. "We may have a location." Optimus replied, uplinking to Brains current feed, some weird tannish thing was wreaking havoc on New York, "Would this be that 'Puddlejumper ?' these two speak of ?"

"Possible, I'll have Twitchy show the feed... yup that is their missing Puddlejumper is there more of the All-spark somewhere or what ?" Pinky said.

Both men were surprised to see their Puddlejumper wandering around in New York, for the most part trying to defend itself and just hide or act normal, the only problem was everyone saw it and the local police tried to shoot it to pieces. But it did not work because of the shields the creature had.

This was all too weird for Lake to comprehend though she went stiff when she too heard over her radio the words Pinky said, "Bring them here." Lake said, She looked to the others, it was time to transform and quick. They all did, minutes before Pinky pulled into view with Lennox and Twitchy right behind with the others in his trailer. All the two men saw when they got out of the trailer was Lennox and Lake, and Mark just stared.

What was she doing there ? Lake crossed her arms as she looked at Mark, "I must admit" She said in her poor English, "You are last person expect to see here.'

"I must say the same." Mark said, "though I do not come in anger to seek a rematch, far from it. In fact we need your help." To Mark and Gaius the five cars, a silver mustang, a black pickup truck, a fire on blue semi truck, a red Dodge Challenger and a black four door military style truck with a trailer looked like normal cars. The Autobots and two Decepticons thought it best to let these two speak,

"The last thing I expected to see was you, I'd much rather try and fight a Decepticon Drone instead of you again, you fight dirty." She grumbled, leaning against the hood of the mustang. Amazingly enough Mark seemed respectful for some reason as he walked forwards. Frenzy was nowhere in sight, nor was Wheelie, but Swallowtail was right there. "What do you want, Alesian ?"

"General O'Neill said we could find you here, mostly because we need help finding our missing craft, apparently it is like these sentient machines that work with you. Maybe if you help us we can get it back ?" Mark said. He looked around, he and Gaius both had Earth designed clothing on, but under it they wore their wrist mounted weapons.

Both men watched Lake as she sat on the strangely made cars front hood. Swallowtail seemed to be painted brighter, but it did not really matter. All that mattered was that Lake was there, so that counted, "You want me to help you get something that belongs to you, when you're afraid to do it yourself ? Ha! Go take care of it yourself, I got other things to worry about." Like finding the Matrix, where did it go ? Swallowtail had not just been resurrected, but also rebuilt in several places, now she could take Lake or others with her past the sound barrier, no longer hindered by human passengers she could go as fast as she dared. Heck even to space!

Mark replied "I wanted to also apologse. It was my comrade here who insisted that I do so. You fight like an Alesian, yet you are not one, you were able to throw me into a wall, that alone makes you a worthy ally in battles to come." He said, he said it respectfully too, that also alarmed Lake, this man had tackled her, broke a window, everything. All over a single gunshot to keep Jack from his office.

"Why do I not believe you ?" Lake asked then, turning to face Mark in full, the scarlet clothed woman was a tall one, but not as exactly tall as Mark, maybe a fraction of a centimeter shorter, it didn't matter. Now though they were on even ground. And if this man was indeed telling the truth, then Lake could make a choice on her own. "If you truly need my help, there is one thing I ask of you."

"Name it" Mark replied, the Alesian stood tall, and kept himself calm. Ready to say anything since he did tell her to name her request.

"We work together, but if you so much as touch me with intent to harm me, I will break your arm. Deal." Lake said, her hazel eyes locked on Mark.

"Agreed." Mark replied. The man then looked around when he got closer. "Now, there is something that troubles me, It concerns the machines that are sentient, I spoke long with my commanding officer and he wants to meet with one of them, or two, any of them that lead. In a way to make peace and possibly a treaty of some sort. Depending on how you want it."

"I think they can answer for themselves." Lake said, the Mustang under her made a strange snickering noise. As if laughing. They were right there of all places, so if they did need to be asked for anything then yes, they may speak for themselves if they had need to do so. "If they want." Lake added as an afterthought.

"Very well, but until then There is the condition of our Puddlejumper. It seems to have become one of those very machines, If it is possible I'd like to get it back in one piece before its too late. It has a shield system and a cloak. So if I can get close enough hopefully it will recognise me as a friend." What Mark did not know was that his own Puddlejumper was also Unicron's current toy, though it was very possible that Swallowtail and Optimus could get it, disable the Unicron codec and let the new Earth Born Autobot make its choice to go with the Alesians again, or just stay on Earth.

Lake spoke up, "Come time in life, choice must be made" She said, "Of those choices, even if one wants to stay with their friends, even if it means their deaths, Will they make that choice." Lake made a good point, She stepped forwards, "Follow." She said, turning swiftly on her heels she went to the hangar like barn, the massive structure had several tables, some of them holographic, Doc stood nearby to one of the holographic tables, On it shows a full hologram of New York, real time, The Herald seen clearly in Center Park making a mess of things.

"We may have to blast." Doc spoke up after seeing the three arrive, Gaius made the wild haired man nervous, but Doc ignored him for the moment, passively scanning the man. "According to the readout that Lift and the NEST choppers are sending us, this thing is Earth Born somehow, ugly as heck too, but pretty danged durable. Look there" Doc zoomed in on the holographic map, it showed a red mark, "That's Unicron's mark. If we can disable that, the Earth Born Cybertronian will revert to normal Earth Born and not be a toy of Unicron any more. But it will take some doing. Only groups of us that can take it on are Optimus and Swallowtail if your dream is right."

"It is, Swallowtail and Optimus can go with Lift, is he coming back yet ?" Lake said, Then she remembered, "Doc, this is Mark, the one I fought with and forced a stalemate with a few days ago." She said introducing Mark, but had no idea who the second man was, Doc nodded and shook hands with both men, his soft gray eyes had a glint of caution to them.

"Lift is on his way, but he wont be here until ten minutes from now, we can prepare though. I informed both the Mustang and Optimus to ready for Lifts arrival. I also gave them a sit-rep of things going on with our Herald, we want it alive, Its Earth Born, and very young, possibly a few hours old. The very very last shard of the All Spark was used to do it. So Its a very young Earth Born." The Delorean driver replied.

"Fine, as long as the Herald is alive when this is over, and in one piece and flyable, things will be fine." Mark said speaking up, getting a good look at the holographic map system, These people were very advanced when it came to technology, sometimes even Swallowtail was caught off guard by their advances in technology. Heck some of their own cars, like her own model had be reconstructed. So things worked out great, mostly.

"There's also the thing of others around, in this case some Decepticlones, and possibly a few Decepticons as well, Starscream was seen in the area," Doc said zooming out on the map. Showing several red dots, "The red are Decepticons, the blue are Autobots, the green are neutrals." He said. There were three red dots near Central Park, one dead center of the park, the rest were scattered around NYC and they were all green. So they were neutrals. They had to be, but there were so many, and none of them were human. They must have been like those Dreads. "Any questions"

"Yes, were do we go from here." Lake asked getting to the point. Not really enjoying the way things were going as it was for the moment. But however things worked better then before due to the fact that most things did work out pretty well so far, after all Swallowtail was back, and alive.

"Well, as soon as Lift arrives we can all get on board and fly to New York, or we can worry more about how many of these red dots are to DC and the capitol building, according to this map, most of the red are under DC." Doc replied, he shifted the map into a high that made it appear that they were walking inside the map. "About level to the level below the subway system actually." Doc said.

Lake stared at the map, "So some of us will have to go to DC, the rest to New York." She said, she looked at Mark, he was wandering around inside the map, looking at it closely as possible, it was so real, much like their own map systems of star systems. Though were walk around able, but everything else was different, this was projected from a table, mostly. "Doubtless you men will want to go to New York and retrieve your Puddle Jumper. I will go with you. Doc, you remain here with Ironhide and Downshift, Ironhide will keep an eye on Downshift while you guys take on the 'Cons in DC, the rest of us, Optimus, Swallowtail, these two and myself, along with Lennox and Epps will go with Lift to New York. We'll meet back here by morning tomorrow." Lake said, at the moment in charge of everything

Doc nodded and relayed everything to the others, the Autobots, including Downshift, all replied with confirmed orders, Downshift though seemed slightly hesitant, but nonetheless she did go with it. Ironhide made her nervous, but what scared her slag-less was the thought of Unicron, so siding and working with the Autobots to rid the world of the Herald of Unicron seemed something o t at least make up for some distrust as Ironhide seemed to think that Downshift stabbed her own sister though her halberd was broken.

The Dread, Battlespike, also acknowledged the orders given by Lake, even Optimus did as well, Swallowtail though seemed a bit thoughtful, conversing with her sister over a secured channel between the two of them alone.

Though what startled all of them was another scout breaking into the connection, since he was with Lift already, "Lift incoming, five minutes out. Anyone home ?" It was Toi, The only one of the other advanced scouts that actually went to earth around the same time as Megatron did, only he hid really well. Hiding as a mausoleum roof until the right car or truck passed under him.

In this case a black Toyota SR5 4x4 pickup truck with mudder tires. Toi made himself a good home with a human that cared for him as if his life depended on it, and Toi in return protected the young human whenever they drove anywhere. Now Toi was on his own when his human was killed by Scorponk in Egypt three years before, so he'd been hanging out with Lift more often. He had no pretender unit, but used a hologram system instead

"Confirmed, Toi, good to hear from you" Doc said over the comms before replying to Lake, "Lift is almost here, five minutes away, Toi just called in to say to be ready to go." He said before replying to Toi over the comms "Yes we're ready to go. How are things with ya Toi ya crazy truck ? You still dirty or did you run through a car wash ?"

"Got rained on Doc, good ta hear ya voice too man!" Toi replied, a strong hint of 1980s style flare to the trucks voice, clearly a 80s man doubtless. "Should see y'all soon enough, keep things open Doc, things are getting heavy! ETA three minutes, Toi out" The connection died, Doc smirked, Toi was always a player, a fun guy too.

Lake nodded, and relayed to Swallowtail and Optimus over her radio to be ready to go, Ratchet as well, the three replied they were ready.

Pinky then spoke up, "Even though I am a Apprentice Medic, I can help here in DC with wounded as best possible, Twitchy and I both can do this if we must." Pinky was one of the few Autobots who could combine with one other, her own brother. They made something of a flier type, though Twitchy could also make for a good fighter when he needed to be one.

"This sounds like a plan," Doc replied, "These two men that you brought will go with Lake and Optimus. Along with Swallowtail and Ratchet, and Lennox and Epps to New York, the rest of us will go to DC, Jack O'Neill is still there and he most likely will need protection from the 'Cons there, they must all know the Icegate is here."

"Can we move it ?" Twitchy asked, it'd pretty easy for the tractor to move such an item, maybe even hook it up to the Energon system as well to power it. already the massive tractor was plotting things.

"For now no, they don't know where exactly the Icegate is, only a few of us know," Doc replied. Downshift didn't know what they were talking about, nor did Swallowtail, though the Mustang knew, but she faked it. She had to, she did not want to risk a battle because of a ring of quartz. "If we can get the 'Cons away from DC we're clear"

"You handle that, I will worry about New York with these guys, take some of the Nest Soldiers with you and also that Dread, it is possible the 'Cons near DC are some of his buddies." Lake muttered looking at the map.

"Yeah well, the best thing is I can cloak, hopefully it will be more of this guys fellows." Doc replied.

"We are all set out here." Came the comm reply from Optimus, "I assume Toi will be coming with us ?"

"If he wants to do just that he may, though he m ay want to go to DC for once." Doc replied, "Been up in the air for so long might get to one you know, Lift is used to it, but Toi, not so much, he's the only 'Bot I know of that gets airsick." Doc snickered, as did Swallowtail, she saw Toi as a little brother, always tried to prove himself, much like Bumblebee, not that it truly mattered.

"Optimus I have a visual on Lift" Came the comm voice of Pinky, the massive FedEx jet headed for landing in the massive backyard of the Autobots current home, "Lift is that you ?"

"Roger that sweetheart, I have a visual on landing zone, will be landing in a minute or so." He replied, the massive jet turned and headed to land. "Lots of 'Cons in the area I see.." He said

"Yeah, will explain later, for now you got some passengers, three Autobots, the rest humans and two Alesians, Wheelie and Brains and the rest will remain here." Pinky replied giving Lift a full sit rep.

"Please tell me I am not part of that threesome" Came the Asian sounding voice of Toi, the black Toyota SR5 pickup truck hated flying a lot lately.

"Don't worry Toi I'm gonna need you with me when we go to DC, be ready for some massive 'Cons though" Doc said, if there were Dreads, that meant only one or two problems, maybe more.

"Copy that doc. Lift lower the ramp I'm jumping!" A second later the ramp opened and Toi rolled out, flipped over and transformed and landed smoothly on his feet. "What a rush." He said, he hated flying, mostly. He got airsick. The truck moved towards the rest of the assembled Autobots, since the humans were all indoors aside from Lennox and Epps, who had never met Toi before. He looked small and compact, like Swallowtail. But shorter by a lot.

Swallowtail transformed then and stepped towards Toi, "Toi! Welcome home, how are things with you and your human ?" Swallowtail didn't know it, but the pained look on Toi's face at mention of his human made her halt, "Is something wrong ?"

"Not really, unless you count my human going to Iraq and getting killed in a roadside bomb attack last month. But other then that things are just dandy, been with Lift since, and airsick too so what else is new ?" Toi said, his tone making it clear he didn't want to talk about it, his owner was actually killed in the Decepticon attack in Egypt.

"Not much, other then a Herald." Swallowtail said. Though Toi's attention had shifted to the red Dodge Challenger, To Downshift in fact.

"What is she doing here ?" Toi pointed towards Downshift as he asked Swallowtail the question, he had yet to see the Dread parked nearby, however as the Mustang and truck were talking in their protomodes, the humans and Doc came from the massive hangar like barn.

"She's fine, don't worry, she's going to DC with you and Doc, Ironhide will keep an optic on her at all times." Swallowtail said, little did she or any of the others know it but another pair of red optics also had its eyes on them all at that moment.

Mark stared at the two massive robots, they were in a simple word, big. He recognised the strange markings on the Mustang, what must have been the mustang at least, but couldn't place the other robot. Though he knew for the moment they were sentient, and as much as he wanted to kill them all right then and there with a antimatter bomb, he kept himself from saying so.

Gaius seemed calmer, the fact along that their only method of transport had become one of those machines, he made a mental note to contact home and Amann to let him know what was transpiring. Their transport had vanished and was somehow a pawn in a much larger game.

Lake spoke up in Mandarin, "love to have the reunion, but time is pressing we gotta go before things really fall apart in New York. Toi, Doc, you guys have charge over DC until we get back, Ratchet, Swallowtail, Optimus, into lift, Lennox, Epps, with me with them now." She motioned towards the two Alesians, "you two, with us now, get into the plane there." Orders were given it was time to get to work.

Minutes went by on the clock showing what was what and when, Mark stared at the inside of the passenger area of the massive plane, Optimus, Ratchet and Swallowtail were all in the cargo area of the plane, the rest of them were in the front area. "Tell me more about these machines, how did our transport become one, it is crystal based, not Terran based." mark said to Lake.

"It is a hard thing to explain, but I will do my best, at the moment you are inside one of those machines that you dislike so much, I'd deck you here and now about it, but I will stay my hand. These machines you dislike are known as Cybertronians, a race that knows how to blend into other items when they must do so." Lake replied.

"What about our transport, how did that become one of them ?" Mark asked.

"The all spark gave its energy to machines, transforming them into sentient creatures, your transport may have come in contact with Energon of some sort not to long ago for that to occur, the transformation takes a minute or so before it kicks in fully." Lake replied "Your machine may have taken longer to take to the transformation, but once it did Unicron got wind of it and decided to use it as a pawn, known to us as a Herald, they are very destructive." She looked carefully at Mark, "What kind of weapons are your transports leveled with ?"

Mark replied, "I do not know your concept of leveling, but its armament is drone based and also plasma based, so it would be very destructive, also, if it is sometimes needed there are antimatter grenades and small antimatter bombs on-board for area clearing." He said. "Why ?"

Lake just looked at him, "Then it is of utmost importance that we find and disable the Unicron codec that is attached to Skystorm before hell really breaks loose." Lake said. She slapped twice on the wall, "Lift, get us there faster!"

"I'm hearing ya lass, everyone hold tight!" Lift replied, a low whine became a ever present droning as Lift hit the sound barrier in an effort to get to New York before it was too late.

* * *

><p>"Give me a good reason why I can't just deck the Dodge and run ?" Toi asked Doc as the truck drove in front of the silver Delorean as if blazing a trail. It was clear that Toi didn't really like Downshift very much.<p>

"Downshift may be of use to us later, for now we have to work together, Unicron is our main concern, where there is one herald there may be others as well in terms of 'Cons. Megatron is gone, but Starscream remains, and so do other 'Cons as well. The best we can hope for is to get to places we need to be to keep peaceful watch." Doc replied, the silver DeLorean kept to speed with the pickup truck, the rest of the convoy, a pink F650 flatbed dump truck with a blue and white New Holland tractor on the bed of it, followed by a black Humvee with a red Dodge Challenger sports car on its trailer, followed by a black GMC TopKick truck

"Yeah well I don't like 'Cons, why are the Dreads still here ? I thought they got killed off" Toi replied, Dreads scared him, but the fact that Battlespike said he worked for an old defected Seeker, that made things slightly better, maybe they'd be more helpful then destructive.

"I cannot answer that Toi, I can only hope the team in New York does their job properly." Doc replied. In truth he hoped against hope that the new Transformer could survive the battle, otherwise they may make enemies they don't want. "If worst comes to worse, we may have access to the Icegate."

"The Icegate ? Doc that's it!" Toi said, "We could make the 'Cons think we have a weapon that could defeat even Unicron's Herald. Though the Icegate is only a path back home, there are weapons stored on Cybertron Zulu we could use against the 'Cons to begin with."

"The last thing I think Earth would want is one of its military installations to be a war zone." Doc replied. If worse came to worst though Toi's idea was a good one. "For now lets worry about keeping DC safe."

"Right, you're the Doc, Doc." Toi replied, the pickup pulled onto the exit to get to the Pentagon. All they had to do was find the 'Cons in DC, "Whoa Doc check your map, not including t he two with us we're pretty much surrounded." Toi said, he was right, the map showed dozens upon dozens of green marks on the wireframe map. They;d hit the mother load just driving past an airfield.

"I think we're almost there, there are many of them around us. Everyone stay on your guard. Keep normal as possible." Doc said, sometimes it was things like this that got him into proper gear. Now all he had to do was focus enough on it to make it work right.

The convoy of cars and trucks and tractor moved onto the boundary for the Pentagon. Several black hummers were parked in the lot, one of them had a snowplow attachment on. The rest did not, they all looked alarmingly like Battlespike. One truck looked like a wagon model.

The convoy came to a halt, almost by reflex alone Toi started long range scanning, finding a red blip, as did Doc, "Oi Doc, we got incoming, 'Con, massive by look of it." Toi said, Doc took one look and recognised the Energon Signature

"Its Knuckleduster! Everyone find cover! You!" The DeLorean transformed and looked towards Downshift who backed off Battlespikes trailer and transformed, "What happened to being alone !"

"I am alone with you guys, I went to see my sister, one on one, nobody else knew of our plan" Downshift said, trying to defend herself.

"Yeah ? Well why is KB himself in all his massive flying glory up top ?" Doc pointed upwards. He was clearly unhappy.

Downshift took one look and saw the massive stratofortress bomber flying above. "Oh slag..." The red sports car knew she was in trouble. She looked back at Doc, "Unicron has a Herald and we're in DC to make sure he does not get another or talk with friends ?"

"Unicron's herald is the least of my current problems child." Doc retorted. He was angered, by a lot. "Tell me first why you have unseen backup, did you plan it ?"

Downshift shook her head, "No, I did not ever call for backup, I wanted to talk to my sister alone, one on one, met up with Battlespike after Swallowtail was killed by one of Headgames toys. Now I'm with you." She said.

Doc looked ready to deck her, Finally he said, "Alright, I accept your excuse, but if you're lying I will shoot you." Doc said. He glanced briefly upwards then his attention was taken briefly by the sudden arrival of soldiers, their guns drawn.

"Hey Doc I think we got trouble..." Toi said.

"Don't worry, they are NEST soldiers" Ironhide said, The truck recognised them all, and reported over their comms "Autobots reporting in, had some unwanteds found on wireframe mapping, came to check it out." He said Well that made things slightly better, since they were among friends. Though Doc looked ready to deck one of them.

"Welcome Ironhide, Sec Def is inside right now, I can send word to him if you need me to do so." the first soldier to speak up, an Airman Jenks. Said.

"No need, right now we only require air support, Doc." Ironhide said, his massive weapons turned towards Downshift, who had yet to move anywhere. "you want to take to the air ?"

"Sure thing, have some backup handy, I'm gonna need it" Doc replied, the DeLorean transformed again and shot into the air. Some of the soldiers didn't understand everything, but knew that Doc was a friendly. Therefore he was not to be fired on.

"Right, Toi, go get some help in the form of these humans air fighters." Ironhide said. Toi nodded and peeled off towards what looked to be a secured area with only certain people allowed to it. Toi easily flipped over the three meter fence. Blaring his horn as loud as he was able, it was like a trucks air horn. Ironhide turned once more to Downshift. Well, this was unexpected, but she seemed defiant that she was alone, nobody else knew of her meeting with her sister. So how had KB come there ? That was a question that Ironhide was unable to answer

* * *

><p>As Lift neared Central Park Lake looked over the holographic map that Lift carried, It showed where Skystorm, the Alesian Puddlejumper, was located in the park, lots of scorched trees and otherwise were to be had everywhere. But that left out little else. "Our little friend is here, Lift, drop me and the others off, but wait to drop Optimus and Swallowtail, they must be right on top of her. Got it ?" Lake said.<p>

"Right kiddo, good luck." Lift replied. The plane banked hard and headed up Broadway, "I have a visual, ETA, thirty seconds and counting." Lift said.

Lake turned towards the Alesians, and also to Lennox and Epps, "With me, quick!" She said, moving towards the ramp that started to open. "Lift is going to drop us first, Swallowtail and Optimus will be dropped on top of Skystorm, I relayed that you want Skystorm in one piece and unharmed, until Unicron's control is broken, they'll have to fight her, I don't know if she'll take any injury though."

"Ten seconds to drop!" Lift called over the comms, the plane slowed a bit to allow the group of five people, four men and one woman to ready to jump. Finally his call came over the radio, "Drop in three..., two... One"

Lake moved first, still several dozen feet in the air Lift came as close as thirty meters to the ground. Thankfully Lennox and Epps had their chutes on, Lake did not have need of such a thing, nor did Mark or Gaius. Angling herself Lake aimed for the nearest structure, Trinity Church.

She hit the steeple and crashed right through it, shattering windows, and hit the roof of the building, breaking it when she came to a halt and hit the ground within it. Well ,that was not a good landing, but it was better then nothing. Mark also aimed himself, and tried to be as close to Lake as he dared, Ended up crashing through the churches front window and landing in the water font at the back of the church, Gaius landed in the parking area across from the church and Lennox and Epps landed on the roof of the building, removed their chutes and dropped on a rope to Lake's level.

"You alright Lake ?" Lennox asked, She had done a number on the building, even though the place had been shot up already once by the 'Cons the year before.

"I am fine, for now we focus on Skystorm, where is Gaius ?" Lake said, Gaius was missing. Where had he gone ? Didn't he land with them ?

He had, but had also engaged his cloak, and while unseen he moved through the ruins of New York and entered Central Park, taking in the destruction, recording it all.

What was unexpected however was what he saw when he got close enough to Skystorm, their Puddlejumper. The area around the rather ugly looking Cybertronian creation was burned and scored repeatedly. What startled him more was Lift opening his ramp once more, and what came out of it was first a Mustang, then a semi truck, But what amazed the young warrior was the fact that both truck and mustang transformed into massive robots of some kind, he recorded it all,

Swallowtail saw Skystorm and aimed to land near the somewhat more stocky Cybertronian, "Hey! Skystorm!" Hopefully the new earth born was not just an empty shell. "Over here you crazy lug!" The Mustang taunted.

Skystorm turned her clear blue eyes towards the somewhat larger Mustang, her back, and Unicron's device of control, clearly seen by Optimus, and the unseen Gaius. "Graaaaagh!" Skystorm yowled, unable to properly speak as she never learned how to do so. And scampered swiftly towards the Mustang, taking wild swings with long thermal blades of some sort. Swallowtail easily ducked and weaved her way around each swing.

"Swallowtail, Saber!" Optimus shouted Swallowtail nodded and grabbed at her side, withdrawing t he Matrix of Leadership, which was also part of the Star-saber. In fact it was the Star saber. That meant trouble. Skystorm saw it and yowled loudly and tried to snatch at it as Swallowtail threw it like a Detroit Lions quarterback on a Sunday football game.

Optimus caught the weapon and ran forwards, he swung the blade, Skystorm blocked, and kicked forcefully at the Prime, Swallowtail jumped the Puddlejumper from behind and kicked hard, sending Skystorm flying. "Sword!" Swallowtail screamed, Skystorm was down. Mostly. Now if only they could get the Unicron control system purged. They needed the Star saber for that.

Optimus tossed it, Swallowtail caught it. Moving swiftly towards Skystorm Swallowtail sung the blade cleanly as Skystorm started to turn around, easily severing the Unicron control pillar that was attached to Skystorm. Who yowled loudly as if in pain and collapsed

Seconds later yells were heard and several Decepticons arrived and opened fire, Swallowtail returned fire as did Optimus. Ratchet appeared as did Lift, the latter two opening fire from above, taking down enemy units with ease as Gaius watched.

Lake, Lennox and the others arrived, weapons drawn, Lake shooting several Decepticlones with her sidearm before switching to her massive weapon and opening fire with it. How she could handle such a weapon was unknown to Gaius but Amann was going to know about her and her skills, now if only he had recorded the fight between her and Mark days before... no matter, he could access the SGC security system for that.

Finally it was over. The remaining Decepticlones were either destroyed or had fled, and Skystorm was in a heap of metal and what must have been other alloys near to Swallowtail. The mustang looked from Mark, who was approaching his transport cautiously. "Take it easy Alesian, she's just had a big scare from Unicron. I destroyed the control matrix, she should be OK, now."

Mark didn't even look at Swallowtail as he stepped over a burnt tree branch and went forwards, Skystorm made a whining noise and slowly pushed herself up, her gaze locking on Mark, seeing him as one she knew, one she had transported many a time.

Swallowtail turned and left, moving to Optimus as a radio notice came of their comms, "This is Doc, we had a run in with Knucklebuster before Downshift managed to drive him off for some reason, no idea he was there until we got to DC, Toi picked him up. It was not until later when we found more trouble. At the moment we're heading back to NEST base in DC, see you guys there."

"Copy that, Doc, keep everything in one piece. And keep an eye on my sister" Swallowtail said before turning to Optimus, "So, that was easier then we thought it was going to be huh ?"

"It was" Optimus replied "Though I fear we will run into other troubles in other places. I want you and Lake to seek out more Decepticlones and their Pretender Units, I got word of some being north of New York. Can you and Lake do that tomorrow ?" Optimus had need to want to find more of those Decepticlones, if only they knew exactly what Headgame was up to.

"Yes, I think we can do that a vacation is really what Lake needs, me as well. Somewhere just to relax." Swallowtail replied. Now trying to figure out why exactly everyone was looking to her as a leader, but she wasn't chosen, just brought back, "Optimus, When Lake brought me back, what happened before that ?" She asked him.

"Lake said she had a dream of the Primes, Said to merge the matrix with your spark, so that was what she did, Lake did not get detailed on it though." Optimus said, he had no idea why Swallowtailwas just brought back and not turned into a Prime, but it didn't matter now, all that mattered at the moment was Swallowtail being alive. "For now lets head back to base."

Swallowtail nodded and transformed, "I'll drive this time around, been wanting to see New York." She said. Her gaze went to the two Alesians as they managed to actually converse with Skystorm, "You think they'll let her live with them ? After all she is their transport, but also something that that one, " Swallowtail highlighted Mark, "Despises, do you think Skystorm has a chance of survival ?"

"One can only hope." Optimus replied before transforming and driving off, "I will see you at base, Don't be late." Swallowtail just smirked, and leaned on her horn as she spotted Lake walking forwards through the smoke, Lake spotted her as well and ran forwards all but landing on the Mustangs hood in something of a hug.

"Did we win ?" Lake asked.

"Yes" Swallowtail replied. "We won."

Lake then noticed Skystorm transform into a Puddlejumper with a shrill sounding "WHEEEE" apparently happy "Do you think she'll survive with them ?"

"We can only find out later." Swallowtail replied. "come on, looks like they're going to fly home, we can drive, get Lennox and Epps will you. For once I'll let you drive." Lake snickered and climbed into the driver seat, Without a few quick motions the Mustang was rolling to were the two men stood watching Skystorm and the two Alesians within her lift off.

"Guys, its time to go! Lets go get in!" Lake called to the two men,

For a moment the two men seemed to ignore her, "Amazing that we came to see something that ugly being a herald of Unicron, who is Unicron anyhow ?" Epps asked.

"At least we didn't get our asses whupped." Lennox said, before noticing Swallowtail and Lake pulling up to them, "Get in, you take shotgun" Lennox said, he climbed into the backseat as Epps got into the front, once both men were in the doors locked and Lake hit the gas, sand and grass flew in all directions as the Mustang left the park.


	10. The War Rages On

_Project Icegate, Project One  
><em>_Chapter 10: The War Rages on_

None of the three within the Mustang were expecting such a welcome after a full day or so in New York just exploring and hiding from Starscream, Swallowtail wanted to get into a shoot out with the plane but Lake inisted not to. As the Mustang rumbled up the drive way to the gated fence that surrounded the NEST Washington DC base they were not expecting to see a pickup truck that was not an Autobot, Jack was there. With him was Carter.

Lake parked Swallowtail, the hood slipt open and her Unit was spat out "Well, it seems we have visitors." Swallowtail said, her eletric blue eyes had something of a shine to them as she four entered the base, they over heard Jack talking,

"…. Well, Sec Def Keller says to do it and I agree, you guys have full access to the stargate now, we got the data we needed from the planet, its a ball of ice, lots of weird stuff on the other side, but its nothing they we can use, but you guys might know what it is."

"If it is some massive hangars, to you that is" Toi was saying, "Then yeah, its ours. Hopefully the 'Cons forgot about it." Toi went quiet when he spotted Lake and the others entering. "Heya Mustang!" Toi said. Swallowtail snickered at Toi's petname for her.

Carter just stared at the four new arrivals, Lake, Lennox, and Epps she knew and had met briefly, but the forth looked too much like Lake to mistake her, though with blue eyes and strange tattoo marks on her face and neck. Jack spoke up, "Carter, meet Swallowtail, Lake's … car."

"Looks more like Lake's doppleganger" Carter replied, Swallowtail traded looks with Lake, the woman in red just rolled her eyes, as if to say, 'I'll tell you later.' In the mean time however, Lake kept her distance from Carter. Sam turned towards Optimus and Doc, both men were seated at a table, with the rest of them, Toi however stood, leaning against a counter. "The data we recived through the stargate from the MALP said that humans could go there, but the place was freezing cold in itself. I do not think you guys could contend with that much can you ?"

"Nope, not if we really have to." Doc said, Though Toi was overjoyed at the possible driving in snow again. Doc, not so much. "Last I knew, Cybertron Zulu was mostly a moon but fertile as well. So not fully a frozen ball of ice."

"Either way, Keller said that we have to give you guys full access to the Stargate if you want it." Jack said. If they wanted access to it then the gate would have ot be moved. Though Skystorm easily accessed it. After all, she was a Puddlejumper., Jack though was still nervous about being in a Cybertronian's gullet, the fact that he was imn a plane that transformed, and he asked for a drink, and he got it, made him start wondering just what was going on with Earth lately.

Optimus looked at Swallowtail, remembering her choioce, "I for one will decline your offer, Earth is our home now, We cannot go back to Cybertron if we tried, Cybertron is lost to us, but this planet is yet to be. We can yet rebuild it." Optimus said, Doc nodded, though Toi shielded it, he was downcast, but it did not matter, Earth was their home,

"I still wanna go snowbogging!" Toi said. Which made Optimus smile, Swallowtail also smiled.

"You always want to get in the mud, Toi" Swallowtail said. It was then that she noticed Lake head to the kitchen, Carter did as well and stood up and followed. Swallowtail set her wireframe map of the house and kept careful watch. Not wanting to loose Lake again, when lake almost lost her

Lake went right to the fridge, opened it and withdrew a Pepsi from the thing, setting the can on the counter she removed a glass from a nearby cupbard and withdrew a strange looking glass, after adding some ice from the freezer she poured the Pepsi into the glass and turned to Carter, "I'd offer something to drink, but something tells me you already have your fill"

Carter smirked, "I still have not forgotten our last meeting, had it ended under better events things would have transpired differently I think" Sam replied, though she did not like Lake very much, "How long has it been ? Six years since you last saw us ?"

Lake nodded, "Yup, Been having a lot of adventures with much better endings" She said. A smirk on her face, "Now, other then recalling days of then, what a bout days of now ? The Autobots are staying on Earth and do not have need of the Stargate as yet. But that still does not answer why the Alesians are here and visiting us lately. The one that attacked me, Mark, he wanted to kill Wheelie, my watchdog when they first saw him. If only Jack had given him that gravy when he asked for it at the time then none of this would have happened."

"You mean if Jack hadn't zatted you none of this would have happened and we'd have no idea just what on earth you had been doing the last six years." Carter grumbled in reply. Lake was sooo lucky to live with aliens on a daily basis. Lennox though was nice. Epps was too. So with that Carter said, "So what happens now ?"

"I think for now we will try and keep the 'Cons away from SGC, if all else fails Optimus wants to use the Stargate as a fallback connection to Cybertron Zulu, known to you guys as P4E-779, the Ice World." Lake said

"The Decepticons ?" Sam asked, what were those ?

Lake grumbled and threw her hands into the air, wonderful. She had to put up with this now ? "The Decepticons are evil, Skystorm was for a short time one of them until Swallowtail and Optimus destroyed the Unicron control matrix that was controlling her." Lake said. She took a sip of her Pepsi. "The Decepticons hide just as easy as the Autobots do, but I think Lennox and Epps can get you some tech to scan everything and find what is what, if anything has anything remotly Energon connected to it, chances are unless iti s disabled or just carefully watched it might transform into something." Lake explained.

"That still does not explain the crater in the parkilot" Sam grumled.

"Crater on the parking... oh, hah! Swallowtail set a diversion, according ot the report that Swallowtail had recorded I watched it all, she set a charge with enough explosive power to knock out power and also cause enough of a distraction for her and Ironhide to run like mad, it also drew some unwanted eyes in the form of a Massive Decepticon named Hive. A monster of a 'Con, Swallowtail is scared slag-less of him" Lake said.

"So when that bang drew out a bad guy, the bad guy is still around ?" Sam asked

"Possibly, if the Decepticons know of the Stargate, or as the Autobots call it, the Icegate, then yes, they will still be around, and ever trying to get to the Stargate to use it as a weapon of war." Lake replied

"So if we put the Stargate in a public place, and allow you guys to have access to it, which is the plan, the Decepticons might try to take it by force ?" Sam started to get the gears turning, but not quickly enough to keep things running smoothly.

"Possible, but they may also lay low, Starscream is still hurting from the buttkicking Swallowtail peppered him with in New York, we also managed to get some help from Doc and Toi though, antiaircraft is fun to play with." Lake smirked. Sam just stared at her.

"What ? You used antiaircraft guns ?" She looked at Lake, the woman in red looked thin as a reed, yet was insanely strong, and looked to be better then Sam had ever seen her in her life. So that meant two things, either Lake was healed recently or just a fast healer, "never mind that, answer me this and I'll leave you alone, How did you get out of Death Valley ? We marked the location where you were to pick you up later, but when we went there you were gone, nothing was wrong in the area, so we tried scanning for you, but we were not able to find you."

"Lets just say that the Autobots have enough software to make even the SGC jealous" Lake replied with a smirk on her face, she guzzled on her Pepsi, "In fact none of the earth made ships can detect them, only stuff Wheeljack, Impact and Doc has made can detect other Energon signatures, so if you want some tech to help find other 'Bots or 'Cons, I can inform Doc or Impact. Well, just Doc, Impact is busy in Nadis again with Cobalt." Nadis was one of the many valleys on one of the moons of Jupiter.

"Do you really think the Decepticons will try to take the Stargate by force ?" Sam asked,

Lake shrugged, "Cannot say for sure, know only that the Decepticons will want a link back to Cybertron as well, if they cannot take it by force they will try to make a second stargate. Knowing them they could do so."

"Make a second one ? You mean one that will last longer then one time use like in my basement ?" Sam asked, She still needed to get a new toaster.

"Yup, Decepticons make things, though shoddy as they appear, to last as long as possible. Only thing able to take down a Cybertronian is a sabot round." Lake replied with a nod.

"Sabot round, are those things heattreated to a six thousand degree magnesium burn ?" Sam asked.

Lake nodded, "Yup, they melt tank armor like a hot knife through butter. If you want to face a Decepticon and survive, you better be ready to sacrifice some men, If you can face that." Lake said.

"Where can we get some ?" Sam asked,

"Doc could also get you some boomsticks if you had need of them, though the one that Sam used on Starscream only gave that F22 Raptor a headache." Lake mused. Sam, she must have ment that Witwicky fellow.

"Ok, you mentioned some people, Who is Starscream ? Who is Hive, come on, come clean Lake, sometimes I think you are being too crytpical for your own good." Sam grumbled. Lake snickered, finally she was annoying Sam again, she missed doing that, she knew some much about the Cybertronians andn Sam was getting annoyed at just that.

"Starscream is a Decepticon, with Megatron dead, Starscream is in charge, It took two tries to do it, but Megatron has indeed kicked the slag heap. Finally. Though everyone thought Starscream would kick it too, but nope, he's still alive." Lake replied. "Sam is Sam Witwicky, a human. And Swallowtail is my Mustang, you met her already."

"You mean your twin ?" Sam asked, asking once more about Swallowtail, Lakes mustang.

Lake nodded and glared at Sam for the intteruption. "Toi is the Toyota, fellow. And Doc is a DeLorean that can fly..." Lake said, once more Sam intterupted her.

"Wait, a car that can fly ? you're pulling my leg aren't you ?" Sam asked, glaring at Lake, how did she know so much and she didn't ?

"….Nope, Doc is a DeLorean Motor Car, with hoverconversion, so he has flying ablity, he also has cloaking systems too so he can go unseen." Lake said, "Optimus and Ratchet you met, and also Ironhide. Wheelie you may have met, but Frenzy you saw. That white 'Bot with the four white eyes, that was Frenzy." Lake remembered then that Frenzy was present in the SGC when Mark and Lake were fighting in the gate room.

The laptop computer nearby on the table chittered something then made a warbling noise as it transformed after hovering off the table about an inch or so, Brains' screen split into three pieces, the two sides folded, the keybord split into several pieces, and within a minute what had been a Laptop computer from CyberPowerPC was a teddybear sized robot with dark and lime green coloring with black. "Whoa I'm smoken in here Lake!" he said. He hopped off the table, he indeed was smoking. Smoked wafted off his white 'hair'

"Brains ?" Lake asked simply. Sam just stared, she had never seen anything like that before. Carter stared in amazment, watching Brains' every move, a teddy bear sized robot, cute too, reminded her of a plushie Albert Enstien

"Located several Decepticons, some of them work for the Defence Department, however those that do are all Dreads, they are lead by one named Duke, who is commanded over by one Thunderstrike. Know him ?" Brains asked, he ambled over to the counter and clambored up it. Lake nodded. Thunderstrike was an older Seeker, much like Jetfire, only less absent minded, more to the point and far more fun to be around, after all, Toi liked the guy and went mud running with the Hummer whenever possible.

"Well, it turns out that Thunderstrike holds current posting on the Cabinet for the White House, Secretary of the Armed Forces. Works with Sec Def John Keller. Good man, great with a gun too." Brains said, "Not sure if anyone knew this but Thunderstrikes persona on the Table in the White House is Thundarious Stryker." Brains concluded.

Sam perked up at mention of Thunderstrikes name. "General Stryker, I know him, worked with him a few times, he oversaw the forming of Homeworld Security." Carter said. Why was now of all times a time to get information like this ? After the battle in both DC with Knucklebuster and also Skystorm. Who as odd as it was welcomed to the Alesians homeworld. Set in a place of honor apparently. "Why are you telling me this now of all times Lake ?"

"It was not me that told you, Carter, meet Brains, Autobot drone and computer hacker class EP, Brains meet Carter, human hacker, class... null." Lake smirked as she introduced the two.

"Nice to meet ya toots. Nice lookin' gams there... Hey!" Lake swatted Brains on the head, He knew what that meant, he was not allowed to droll over other humans other then Lake, otherwise Frenzy'd rewire his insides. Sam just wondered what the laptop meant, "Anyhow yes, Thunderstrike is a former Decepticon Seeker, an old fellow too. His pretender unit transcanned a General George Hammond a few years ago and been using it ever since only with more hair, just cut really short. The Red Eyes give him away I think as not a normal human, though he acts it well."

"How many Dreads does he have under his control ?' Lake asked, what were Dreads ? Carter was at a loss, Lake continued to smirk, the smirk growing larger every minute as Sam got more and more annoyed.

"Looks like six dozen, all of them hummers, military grade Hummer H1 ECVs." Brains replied. Well, that was news, six dozen Dreads under command of a old fart. Oh joy. "Why ?"

"What are dreads ?" Sam then asked, not knowing things like this was indeed annoying to the Colonel.

"Dreads are like Wreckers, really suicidal, and also really brutal and deadly as hell, Thunderstrike commanded pretty much a full unit of a hundred or so Dreads, when Prima died Thunderstrike defected to neutral and tried to keep to himself" Brains replied, "So far Thunderstrike has done good enough staying on his own. Its why NEST recognised the Autobots when they arrivied, they were also ready for KB, that stratofortress turned tail and took off, literally. Too many Dreads most likely."

Lake looked thoughtful, "Downshift had backup and told noone ?" She asked. That was not good, not smart either, Downshift had insisted to Swallowtail that she was alone, so if she had backup she could have been lying, unless Doc had fpound her to be speaking the truth, and therefore marked it as true, KB was there on someone elses orders and Downshift never knew it.

"She inisted she was alone, even tried telling KB off, didn't do any good until Doc gave him a nosejob" Brains snickered. "Though it was a bummer the Stooges were not able to have fun as they wanted to do so originally., though they managed to cause a pain in the neck to some Decepticlones. General though had first dibs on a Energon tank. Oh, and Prybar just bought a old auto junkyard. Calling it Joes Collision and Scrap. Professional items built while you wait... Must be some Junkion lingo." Brains said.

Prybar was a nice Junkion, Swallowtail went to him regularly for oil changes and made sure to repay him in scrap from car accidents she'd caused leaving the shop every time, so it made things lots of fun for Lake too to visit, having never seen a Junkion before it was hard for her to understand him, he spoke in old AsSeenOnTV type way. It made Lake snicker at mention of Prybar starting a collsion shop.

Lake finished her drink and set the glass into the sink, tossing the can into a container she moved otwards the door, as she did so she spoek to Sam, "I'll talk to Doc about some Energon Signature scanner tech, until then keep your cool, you're nice pretty when you're mad." Lake snickered again, Sam threw her a dirty look.

Lake reentered the livving room of the three storoy mansion. Jack was speaking and making plans with the others in the room, Doc was making notes in the air, seemingly from nothing but holograms. "… I still do not see how exactly these Decepticons fit into the equasion, why did they come here in the first place ? How many of them are there ?"

Optimus was about to answer but Lake spoke first, "A lot. Right now, all you have to worry about is keeping the Stargate from public view. Once that is done things can run smoother Maybe, If you want to go public with the Stargate, that's your trouble. Not ours." Lake said, if Jack wanted to go public it was really up to him in the first place, otherwise things would go as normal.

Jack nodded, "I'll think about it" he said, he then noticed Lake turning to go outside, "Where are you going ?"

Lake snickered, "Outside for some air, why ? Has anyone seen Wheelie and Screecher ?" She looked towards Toi, who snickered and pointed at the backyard. Screecher was... swimming... Wheelie cheering him on.

"Someone tell me that Screecher did not eat more Energon ?" Swallowtail said, giving Wheelie an Energon goodie was bad enough, heck letting him take a bit was overkill, but Wheelie preffered the liquid refined Energon over anything else, so that was a relief.

"Lift gave him an Energon goodie." Doc said, Swallowtail stared at the Delorean slackjawed, "Don't worry, Screecher deserved it for the help he was in DC. If it weren't for him we'd have worse trouble, KB would have landed had Screecher not shorted the main panel for the Pentagon and rewired it to a secondary system. Even rerouted KB as well." Doc explained the mission, Sceecher was able to get to a very mall place that not even Wheelie could reach.

Swallowtail still stared at Doc, but let the matter drop as Lake turned to go outside, the woman in red slid open the sliding door to the backyard and stepped outside onto the patio and moved around the place, looking first back at the house hearing Jack still speaking about plans, and Optimus making his thoughts.

Swallowtail saw Lake leave and standing on the deck looking out to things outside, The Mustang sighed deeply and made her exit from the living room and joined her friend on the deck. Lake was watching the drones swimming and having a blast in the pool. "Optimus told me about your dream." Swallowtail said softly after a minute.

"Really. What else did Optimus tell you." Lake asked thoughtfully. She had met the Primes, was out of it for some time the fact that Downshift drove her home while Battlespike drove Swallowtail home on his trailer. "That I met the Primes, yelled at him to get the Matrix to bring you back ?"

"No, he didn't tell me any of that, but he did tell me that you missed me that much to want me back." Swallowtail said, Lake smiled thinly and nodded, it was true, She had missed her friend so much that she almost decked Optimus where he stood just to get the Matrix to bring Swallowtail back.

"What about you. How do you feel. I was told to merge the Matrix with your spark, do you feel any different. Are you a Prime now too." Lake asked.

Swallowtail smiled, but shook her head, "The Matrix of Leadsership did not choose me, but it did bring me back from the dark. That much is what counted. It's not my time to go, I'll die another day." Swallowtail smiled again. Lake looked at her friend, then back to the pool, Frenzy cannonballed into the water with a splash, Wheelie was jumping around like a puppy gone happy with bones. Screecher was playing submarine.

"You want to swim. Or take a walk." Lake asked after a few minutes, Swallowtail snickered.

"Since when did you swim ?" The Mustang asked her friend. She found it odd that Lake would ask to swim rather then Swallowtail just up and dropping her into the water at times

"I don't know, a while now I think, so, what will it be." Lake turned to Swallowtail, The spark in the Autobot's eyes were enough, they'd take a walk, and most likely end up with her in the river again. "Want to let them know ?"

"Up to you, if you want them to know I'll tell them and meet up with you out front." Swallowtail said, Lake nodded, allowing her friend to go into the house, Lake herself walked ot the end of the dekc and went around the side of the house, thinking as she walked, She had seen Carter, they had p arted ways slighlty better then before... What, Lake halted when she saw Carter outside in the front yard near her rented truck.

"Did not epxect to find you here" Lake said as she neared, ever cautious.

"You never mentioned our last meeting, you mentioned at the SGC that you swore to get even with me, so if you want to hit me, go ahead and take a whack." Sam said. Annoyed was one thing, but keeping up a grudge that long was quiet another.

Lake snickered, "I swore I'd get even with you. But I did not tell you how or when. Just that I would get even, so it is a matter now of when, not how or where. Just when. I'll find you."

"So what happens now ?" Sam asked, the two women stared at each other

"For now we leave in peace, but then ext time we meet, all bets are off, deal." Lake said, she stared at Sam for a long minute, she felt Lennox's eyes on her, but ignored him for the moment, Swallowtail appeared.

Sam finally nodded after a long moment, "Deal. Next time we meet, all bets are off and one of us lands in the infirmary." She said, Lake smirked and turned when Swallowtail appeared, the two then headed off on their walk.

Lennox stepped out onto the drive watching both Mustang and driver walking off. "That's right Lake, keep on walking. Don't look back." He said softly.

Epps joined him and also watched Lake head off with Swallowtail on their daily walk, "You think we'll see NORAD again ?" he asked Lennox, he liked thep lace and wanted to look into it more, but then again h e had more Autobot friends to get used to.

"No idea, I know only one thing, with the Autobots, its best to not worry about that for now." Lennox replied, "It'll happen soon enough." Epps snickered, "Want pancakes ?" He asked his friend. Lennox laughed, both men turned back ot the house and went to the kitchen to make themselves something to eat.

* * *

><p><em>"…..And so, legend tells that Lake continued walking. With her was Swallowtail and the Autobots. Ready to wage war on the Decepticons on Earth and other planets. Lake knew she'd be back to match wits with Carter and O'Neill once more. But, for now, with the war with the Decepticons ahead, she continued walking, ready to meet it head on."<em>

The man sighed and took a deep breath. "And so ends my tale, I hope you enjoyed listening to it as I in the telling of it" He told the man listening and writing down every word. A young man of Spanish-American decent. A reporter of some kind as news of the events in Colorado and New York were made public and the Stargate was a military project of some sort three years after the mission.

"I did yes, but what happened to Lake, what choice was it that she made ?" the man asked. Clearly wondering about the choice that Lake was to make that was mentioned in the story. The choice Swallowtail had to make was clearly seen, she chose simply to stay on earth as her kindred chose to also stay.

"That..." The man replied, "Is a whole 'nother story." he said with a hint of a smile on his face. Lennox liked telling stories to those that would listen, and this mission of many many years ago, and he was now retired. Made it fitting to tell such a tale. Lennox by then was very old. And all but had one foot in the grave. But Lennox was still going strong. There was little that could keep him down.

The reporter stood up then, ready to leave the assisted living home, where Lennox had moved to when his wife died two years before just to put a roof over his head, even though Annabel insisted he come live with her William refused saying he did not want to be a burden on his daughter and her family. Two wonderful children he could tell stories to. "Thank you Mr Lennox, it was a good story to tell, maybe it will make a good book if you put it to writing." He said

"Oh I have" Lennox replied with a laugh, "When it was told to me the first thing I did was write it down, word for word, that was when there were still bookstores to visit." He said shaking the mans hand as he left. He was a good kid, Lennox mused, young, worth telling a thing or two. But telling stories of missions with the Autobots, which were thankfully declassified as it was. Was a good thing. He couldn't get jailed for it or anything now.

As the door closed behind the man a ever familiar rumble was heard as a Mustang pulled into the parking lot, a woman dressed in scarlet red stepped out of the car and another woman who appeared similar to the red clothed woman got into the backseat. Lake entered the assisted living house and Lennox stood as she entered. Lake hadn't aged a bit since he'd last seen her nearly thirty years before! For all Lennox knew Lake was still twenty one. She looked it. But according to official documents, Lake was well past ninety, nearly a hundred, and she nor the Autobots, were ready to quit, yet.

The pair hugged tightly, Then Lake asked him, "Still telling stories William." Her grasp of English still very poor, thankfully the man knew Mandarin very well, well enough to get by, Cybertronian too.

"Just to keep the kids busy." Lennox replied. He then saw the concern in her eyes, "What is it ?" Whenever there was that concerned look in the red clothed womans eyes that got William Lennox ready for the worst. But then sometimes, he'd take much worse then loosing fellow soldiers on missions long past

"It's Ray, he wants to see you before he goes on that last mission. As he calls it" She replied. Ray was in the hospital with pneumonia, and he told Lake that he would not go on that last mission until he saw William Lennox, and Swallowtail one last time. With all the missions they'd been through, Lake agreed and left the hospital to fetch Lennox as fast as she could, Ironhide remained at the hospital to keep Ray company as long as he was able.

Lennox nodded and moved towards the door, taking up a ornate cane from near his chair and walking along side Lake, who held the door open, "Its best to see the soldier off then, Ray is a good man, I will miss him." Lennox said. The two moved to Swallowtail, the passenger side door opened without a sound allowing Lennox to get in comfortably as Lake took her place behind the wheel.

Lennox looked at the sign of the rest home he was living the last two years of his life at, he spoke as Lake pulled onto the highway. "You think we can do another mission with the Autobots ?" Lennox asked.

Lake didn't reply, but Swallowtail did, "You think the president would let you ?" Lennox was old yes, b ut not that old, already thirty three when he first met the Autobots, and now nearing seventy five as it was, two open heart surgaries, three lung transplants, and a hip replacement. All of them well worth it over the course of his life.

"Before or after I whack him with my cane ?" Lennox quipped right back, causing Lake to smile as a chirping noise was heard from Swallowtail as the car and driver both laughed, for the first and only time that Lennox knew her, at least that he'd seen.

The End


End file.
